Miles To Go Before I Sleep
by GrangersDangerousLiaisons
Summary: There's something odd about that Hermione Evans.
1. The Evan Girls

Prologue: October 31, 1981

Hermione Evans stood shivering as she held a baby in her arms. Magic, ferocious, pure, wild, insidious, swarmed around the pair, slowly but steadily settling into the baby.

She looked at the spot, the spot where Hermione Granger had once stood and shut her eyes against the anguish threatening to crush her.

She had to do this. She was fulfilling the timeline. She was fixing the future. She was saving Harry.

Her eyes snapped open and she gazed down at the baby in her arms again.

"It's for the greater good." She repeated it in her head like a mantra yet it did nothing to deter the guilt.

She had to find the strength to continue. The hardest part was already done. She had already…she had already killed; it was too late to go back.

She rocked back and forth and waited for the magic to finish melding into the baby. She watched the baby glow, sleeping none-the-wiser as the baby's soul was being corrupted, enhanced, split.

Then, rather abruptly, the magic in the air faded and the baby's eyes snapped open, unnaturally aglow, and let out a bird-like wail.

Hermione acted quickly, placing Hermione Granger's necklace around the baby. Once done, she gently placed the baby inside the wicker basket on the stoop and once more reached for the necklace.

She turned the hourglass just as Hermione Granger had directed. In a flash, the baby was gone and Hermione Evans was left alone on the stoop of her childhood home.

She hadn't realized she was crying until a sob escaped her, sounding like a wounded animal.

She felt close to breaking down but took deep breaths to push down the urge. Her mission was not over yet.

 **20 Years Earlier** …

A loud clapping sound had the house shaking. Monica Evans jolted in fear out the sound, startling the infant she had been breastfeeding. Little Lily immediately started wailing in her arms, and Monica cooed and rocked the baby, trying to get her to settle.

"Shhh, shhh," Monica crossed over to the window to check outside. She was startled to find no storm wailing outside but rather, quite the opposite; it was a perfectly calm night, there were even fireflies lighting the grounds majestically. What had caused that sound then?

Monica frowned, trying to quell her nervous energy. She wanted to call her husband but knew better to disturb him when he was working. Sometimes she wished she never married Robert. His job as a police officer had him working all sorts of long wretched hours and she needed him here with her and their two kids.

"Mummy?" Monica turned away from the window while fixing her frown. Her eyes fell onto her eldest daughter rubbing the sleep from her eyes, blonde hair rumpled and looking adorable in her nightgown.

"Oh, baby, did that noise wake you?" Monica asked, placing a sleeping Lily back into her cradle before herding Petunia away. She didn't want to wake the baby again. Clipping her baby monitor to her hip, she moved with Tuney back over to her room.

"Mummy, there's someone crying outside." Monica stopped at her daughters' words, goosebumps prickling over her skin and the unnerving statement. She gently turned her daughter back toward her.

"What did you say?" Monica asked, pasting on a smile to her face despite her fear.

"I can hear something crying outside the window." Monica's heart leaped again but she forced herself to calm down.

"Okay baby, Mum will come with you to hear it too." They moved, clasping hands, back to Tuney's room and instantly heard it. Something was crying from the front her their house.

No, not something. A baby.

"Oh goodness," Monica breathed, trying to see the front stoop from the window of her daughter room with no luck.

"Mum?" Monica turned her head back to Tuney.

"It's okay, darling. Go back to bed, okay? Mummy has it taken care of." And then, without waiting around to make sure Petunia listened, Monica crossed the room, gently closed the door and flew down the stairs, heart in her throat. She rushed to the door and peered out the peephole to find nothing but an empty expanse of darkness beyond the light of the stoop. She could hear the baby crying.

In no time at all, she opened the door to find a baby, no older than her youngest baby, wailing in a little wicker basket.

Without a second thought, Monica leaned down and picked the baby from the basket, her heart crying on behalf of this poor child.

"Shhh, shh," she cooed as she held the child and suddenly the baby did. Monica watched as that face morphed from distress to content and raised her hand so the baby could latch onto her finger.

The baby raised her wide brown eyes to hers and everything clicked.

"Hermione, my darling girl," she whispered with a smile, feeling whole. "Welcome home."

Chapter 1: Duplicity

Her hands cut through the water with precision, taking perfectly concise breathes after a few strokes. Her vision was filled between the different hues of green and blues of the lake water and the clear blue sky when she drew breath. Her whole world was so beautiful in these moments, so clear-cut. That's why she loved swimming and was the best in her age group because when she loved something she put her whole self into it.

Her pace slowed as she reached the lake shore until she could stand. She then waded her way through the water, huffing as she caught her breath, her eyes wandering around the forest edge. A frown came over her face as she walked across the floor, slipping on her sandals on the way and still drenched from her swim.

She came upon the trees not so far away when she spotted two other girls in the distance, an air of secrecy about them as they huddled together. Her frown deepened as she knew immediately what those two were up to. Stomping over, she glared at them as they turned their faces to her, unfazed by the stormy look on her face.

"What do you think you're doing, Lily? Mum and Dad said-" The brunette began.

"Oh, bugger what Mum and Dad said! Go on Lily! I want to see you do it." Excitement was evident in the blondes face as she stared at the red-haired girl who held a small flower bud in her hand. Keeping her head bent over her hand, the redhead did not respond, merely stared with enchanting emerald eyes.

"And if someone sees? Then what, Tuney?" The brunette retorted sharply, glaring heatedly at the taller of the three with crossed arms.

"No one comes in here Mione! It's too close to the drug addicts, stop being such a scardy cat!"

"Don't call me that! I'm just-" Words died on the brunette's lips as she stared at the fully bloomed flower in Lily's hand. The blonde turned her pale eyes on her as well before squealing as the flower started slowly levitating higher before them.

"Wow! How are you doing that, Lily?"

A twig snapped, immediately making the three jump. Reacting quickly, the brunette reached out and crushed the flower in her hand before standing in front of her sister and facing their intruder.

Heart pounding with dread, she fixed her eyes on a boy. He looked quite pale against the dense background of brown, his black lanky hair an even more striking contrast. He looked rather skinny in his oversized dirty ripped clothes, and the dark circles under his eyes emphasized his unhealthy look. In fact, for one outrageous moment, he looked like a ghost.

His unfortunate state hardly mattered, however, not when he just saw their terrible secret.

"Who are you?" The brunette demanded roughly, meeting his dark deer-in-the-headlights eyes fiercely.

"I-"

"What do you want? What are you doing here?" She took a step toward him making the boy immediately step back.

"Nothing!" He gasped out before he turned and started running unexpectedly.

"WAIT!" Hermione cried out with sudden fear just as the boy fell quite spectacularly with a loud exhalation of air. Petunia immediately burst out laughing at the hard fall; Hermione just gaped, relieved that he had not gotten away. Lily sprang into action, running over to the fallen boy. Hermione gazed after her sister in shock for a moment before turning to Tuney and slapping her arm, sharply ending her laughter.

"Oi, what did you do that for?" She asked her angrily.

"It's impolite to laugh!" She responded before she trudged after Lily at a much more subdued pace.

"Are you alright?" Lily asked as she bent and helped the boy up. Shaking his hair back from his face the boy opened his mouth to respond before his eyes fell on Lily. They widened almost comically at her beauty, making his mouth shut with an audible snap. Hermione rolled her eyes at his reaction to her sister and scoffed meanly. His dark eyes fell to her with notably less awe. Crossing her arms, Hermione met his stare before speaking.

"You can't tell anyone what you just saw!" She ordered as he finally detracted himself from Lily. Lily shot her an impatient look.

"Of course I won't tell anyone. It's illegal to tell muggles about magic." His tone suggested that Hermione was slow for even stating this. It irked her, she hated being talked down to. She opened her mouth to hotly respond when Lily interrupted.

"What are muggles?" She asked making him turn his focus back to her.

"They're non-magic folk, like your parents."

"How do you know if our parents are muggles?" Petunia asked with a hint of bitterness, crossing her arms.

"Well if they were magical then you all would know this already like I do."

"So your parents are magical, then? That is so groovy! Do you think they would help me? Teach me more?" Lily asked turning the full force of her bedazzling smile onto the boy. Predictably, he looked quite besotted staring at her.

"Only Mother was a witch and my dad is a muggle. She left a long time ago so she can't help and wouldn't even if she could, but when you turn eleven you'll get a letter from Hogwarts and then you'll have Professor's that will help you."

Lily positively glowed with excitement as her eyes first met Hermione's as if to say- Did you hear that?- and then turned back to the boy.

"What is your name?" She asked wearing that sweet smile that had adults fawning and children vying for her friendship.

"Severus." He smiled a closed-lip smile, tentative and undoubtedly rare.

"Well I'm Lily, that's Hermione, my twin, and our older sister Petunia."

Severus's eyes flicked back and forth between the sisters before lingering on Hermione and then back to Lily. "You guys don't look alike."

Hermione rolled her eyes, as heat suffused her skin. She was used to people commenting unfavorably on the differences between herself and Lily, yet, no matter how many times it happened it still smarted.

"We're obviously fraternal twins which I would have thought you would realize since you seem to know so much." She smirked at his affronted expression that quickly morphed to anger. Lily shot her another look to which she ignored.

"I did realize that— I was just saying."

"Do you make it a habit to state the obvious, then?" she asked condescendingly as Lily swirled to face her fully with her hands on her hips.

"Hermione, stop it!" She hissed in that self-righteous way of hers that irked Hermione to no end even though it was a shared trait of theirs.

"I'm not doing anything! Aren't you the one forgetting that he saw what you did, Lily? How do we know he won't go telling others? And the stuff he said— do you honestly believe him? He's-"

"I can prove it!" Severus interrupted hotly, glaring at Hermione now. Both girls turned to him fully one with skepticism and the other with barely contained enthusiasm.

"Let's see it then!" Petunia encouraged eagerly.

"Yes, please, I would love to know more." Lily chimed in. Hermione watched as his expression turned from defiant to suddenly nervous.

"You'll have to wait here, it will take me a bit to get the stuff-"

"No way," Hermione immediately cut in, "We're coming with you. I don't trust that you're not just lying to us." His jaw ticked as he glared at her again but she stubbornly stood her ground. For a moment he looked to be debating with himself, his eyes trailing from her back to Lily, clearly wanting to not disappoint her.

"No, no," He said shaking his head, "you can't come with me."

"And why not?" Hermione demanded as Lily huffed at her. "If you're not lying-"

"I'm not lying!" He bellowed making the girls jump and some birds fly away. He looked properly ashamed after his outburst, turning his dark eyes onto Lily apologetically. "I'll be right back!" Then he took off again, through the woods. Hermione gaped at him for a second before snapping her mouth shut.

"That's it, I'm telling mum and dad! If he tells someone we could really be in for it."

"What is the matter with you?" Lily, looking exceptionally pissed off, screeched at her. "You shouldn't have been so mean to him! He didn't do anything-"

"I wasn't being _mean_! I was trying to protect us! Mum and dad told us we had to try not to do magic in front of anyone again and now look at what you did! Do you even realize what you've done?"

"But of course, _you_ do right? Oh, please, _please_ , oh wise one, tell me what is it that I have done?" Lily mocking sarcastic response made Hermione's anger boil over. Glaring at her sister, furious energy rolled off of her in waves, causing sparks to emit from her hair to singe the ground. Lily didn't back down from her twin, however, and met her glare right back. Petunia backed up, worriedly looking between her two sisters and had a mental image of two lionesses facing off.

"Hermione, Lily, calm down."

"This is our chance to understand what is happening to us and you've probably ruined it!" Lily hissed.

"I've ruined it? Don't be daft Lily! Mom and Dad have been looking into what's occurring to us for years now and they've never found anything! Do you really think that some boy will just suddenly have all the answers?" For a moment Lily looked uncertain and Hermione latched onto that doubt. "Think about it Lily, if what he said was true, don't you think there would even be a hint by now?" She was surprised when instead of agreeing a fire seem to blaze in her twins green eyes.

"That's just the thing, isn't it? We _are_ the hint, Hermione! What we can do, we are the evidence!" For a moment Hermione couldn't even speak as she stared at her sister.

"Lily…" She trailed off, unsure what to say.

"See? You can't deny that Hermione!"

"Okay, okay," she said in acquiesce with a slow nod, "Then what do you think they'll do to us? Since we are the evidence and we can't be the only ones, what happens to them? What's happened to all the others?" She asked, keeping her eyes locked on her's, telling her with her eyes what she wasn't saying with her mouth.

"We can't all be hidden away, there would have been someone who spoke out before."

"So, you think they've been killed off? Really?" Lily asked rolling her eyes.

"No! I'm only saying that we have to be careful until we know all the facts!"

"That's what I was trying to do Hermione! I was trying to get the facts and then you were being your usual self and now-"

"That boy doesn't have the answers Lily!"

"How would you know? You just kept going on, jumping down his throat!"

"Calm down you two! I'm not going to say it again!" Petunia suddenly piped in, looking at them with disdain. "Arguing with each other isn't going to solve anything!"

"Petunia, you agree with me, though, right? You know Lily-"

"Petunia would agree with me that you are making a much greater deal of this then you need to!"

"I don't care either way! I've had it with you two! I'm leaving!" Immediately, the two started protesting, Hermione reaching out and grabbing her older sister to stop her departure.

"No, don't go Tuney!"

"Yeah, we'll stop! We'll stop!" Reluctantly, Petunia halted with an almighty sigh.

"Fine but I mean it! You two better stop!" They nodded just as Severus reappeared at a distance. It did not escape Hermione's notice that he was returning from where addicts were notoriously known to live by.

"He came back!" Lily said, bounding forward to meet him. With a huff, Hermione followed after with Tuney racing ahead to join Lily.

"Wow! What is all this?" Lily asked, staring at all the odd items in his hands. Severus laid said items down onto the ground as he tried to catch his breath.

Hermione gazed down and felt instantly drawn to the smattering of books and newspaper's as Lily reached out to grab a tiny bottle, reading the label and Petunia grabbed an old photo.

"Essence of Murtlap? What is that?" Lily asked. Severus reached out and grabbed the bottle and then rolled up one of the sleeves of his overly large shirt, revealing a cut on the elbow. Dipping his fingers into the bottle he smeared a generous coating of the slimily looking solution onto his wound.

Eyes wide, they watched as the cut instantly healed without even leaving a faint scare. He raised his head and a small smirk played on his lips at their gobsmacked expressions.

"There are spells that can be used for a small cut like that. Essence of Murtlap is normally used to treat other things like cursed boils and the like."

' _Boils?_ ' Petunia mouthed at her, looking disgusted.

"And this?" Lily asked eagerly, holding up a bottle labeled Skelogrow.

"It helps with broken bones. That is dittany, which helps with cuts among other things and that is a dreamless sleep potion which helps a person get at least eight hours of sleep without interruption. There's a ton of other potions too! My mother was a potions master, she once made something really hard to make called Felix Felicis, which is liquid luck. Makes the drinker extremely lucky for a while—that was really great! She let me have some and it was…" He trailed off with a smile as Lily hung onto every word.

"It was?" she prompted making Severus come back before his cheeks tinged pink.

"Er, it was really great. Everything went my way that day. What else…oh theirs a potion to turn the drinker into someone, anyone, else and…"

Hermione sat down, head bowed as she listened to her sisters and him going back and forth but it sounded from a distance to her, her mind reeling as she finally came to terms with all the stuff around her. She opened the closest text called Advance Hexes and Curses and skimmed through all the pages, before picking up another and another. She then reached for one of the photographs and saw that it moved, actually _moved_! A woman that looked remarkably like Severus walked up to a podium and excepted some sort of reward as the camera's flashed and she shook the hand of some old man in a large hat. She then grabbed the paper and read the _Daily Prophet,_ finding more moving pictures and bold headings labeled, New Minister of Magic! Albus Dumbledore Declines Post Again!

"You didn't make it up," she whispered, her heart pounding.

"What?" The boy asked sharply. Raising her head, Hermione stared with wide eyes at him.

"You didn't make it up!" she repeated with shock as he scoffed at her.

"I told you I didn't!" He huffed. Hermione, feeling wretched, shocked and overwhelmed, reached out and grabbed his hand, giving him a gentle squeeze. He gazed at her wide eyes as she met his look with dead seriousness.

"I'm sorry, I…I was wrong and I'm sorry. Please— _please_ — tell me everything!"

.

.

.

"Please, Severus, pretty pleaseeeee!"

Hermione ran a hand down her face as Severus groaned.

"He already told you no, Lily!" she hissed, completely fed up with her sister.

"Keep out of this Hermione! No one was talking to you anyway!" the quick-tempered redhead snapped back. Hermione's eyes flashed as she stood from her reclined position against a tree, her book tumbling to the floor. "Oh no," Sev grumbled.

"I don't care if you weren't talking to me! You're being annoying! He already said he wouldn't take us and I don't blame him! It's dangerous and we have no idea what we are doing!"

"Ugh! I am so sick of you always going on about this being dangerous and that being dangerous! How are you ever going to live your life if you're too scared to actually live it!"

"I'm not scared, Lily! I just don't see a need for us to go when he already told us we're going to get to go when we get our Hogwarts letter! Why can't you just wait until then? It's not like we could even buy anything if we do go now anyway!"

"I don't care if we don't get to buy anything! I just want to see it!"

"You're being da-"

"I'll do it." Hermione and Lily froze, turning there head to stare at Severus. He shifted his feet, looking unsure before flicking his eyes up to Lily's slow smile blooming on her face. That smile seemed to strengthen him as he nodded to himself resolutely. "I'll do it." he repeated in a much stronger voice.

"Sev-" Hermione started before again she was cut off as Lily launched herself at Sev, making them both topple over onto the ground.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Lily squealed from on top of Sev, who was turning an alarming shade of red. Hermione frowned a familiar old tightening in her chest making her look away from them for a second with her hands clenched.

"Okay, get off of him now Lily, he can't breathe." Hermione said making Lily look down before quickly releasing him.

"I just…I am _so_ excited!" They smiled at one another but Hermione could see the difference between the two smiles, Lily's held pure affection, Sev's held pure devotion. Hermione's frown deepened.

"It would be useless to try to talk you out of this, wouldn't it?" She stated more than asked. Lily beamed at her.

"Yep! We're going! When can we go Sev?"

Three hours later found the three standing before a large brick wall.

"We're going to be in so much trouble if mum and dad find out." Hermione said as Sev started tapping the bricks.

"Petunia is covering for us, we'll be fine." Lily responded, brushing her concern off flippantly. It took him two tries but Sev finally got it, coming to stand back between the girls as the wall shifted and morphed to unveil the world beyond it.

Lily reached out for his hand first and Hermione, spotting this, mirrored the action, ignoring the flickering inquisitive look Sev sent her way.

Then together they entered.

Hours later, Hermione placed her book onto her nightstand and gazed over at her sister laying on the bed across from hers. Oblivious, Lily continued to absentmindedly chew on her chocolate frog as she read Witch Weekly, candies and other treats scattered on her bed. Spoils from the trek they made today. Lily had successfully charmed her way through Diagon Alley, merchants gifting her, and by extension them, with sweets and butterbeer, one even gave her a free quill. It had been impressive— Hermione figured that Sev must worship her more even now.

She idly wondered what he was doing right at that moment. Was he safe and eating his treats too? She knew in her heart of hearts that no matter what he was doing he was probably thinking about Lily as he did it… he was always thinking about Lily.

She flipped and turned her back onto her sister.

"Night, Hermione." Lily called before switching off the light.

"Goodnight, Lily."

.

.

.

"Girls! Get up!"

Hermione crossed the room and opened the door.

"We've been up, mum!" she called back down. And indeed they had been, for most of the night in fact.

"I just can't believe it! We're finally going!" Hermione smiled at Lily and dragged her school trunk over to the door. "Oh, wait, I'll help you."

Together, Lily and Hermione carried their trunks one at a time down the stairs to the front door.

At breakfast, her parents kept up a constant stream of conversation, sad and happy for their daughters, Petunia chiming in but otherwise acting aloof.

"Sev is late." Hermione said, gazing at the clock.

"He'll be here soon, I'm sure." Lily responded as she washed her plate

Not even five minutes later the doorbell rang making both girls run eagerly to the door. Hermione got to the door first and opened it with a beaming smile, Sev offered her a smile in return before red launched at him.

"Sev!" Lily cried as they hugged tightly. "Can you believe it! It's the day! It's finally the day!"

Hermione didn't hear his response as she reached out and pulled his old battered trunk inside as Lily pulled in Sev.

"Have you had breakfast yet?" Hermione asked, interrupting Lily's constant stream of excited conversation.

"Yes-"

"Liar," Hermione cut in with a small smirk as he just rolled his eyes at her.

"Why ask then if you're just going to force me to eat?"

"Because that's what we Evans do; we force Severus' to do things they don't want to do." Lily said with a teasing smirk, nudging him playfully in the shoulder. Sev smiled that Lily smile, as Hermione deemed it since it was a smile that he only ever directed at Lily.

They walked back to the kitchen, the rest of the family greeting Sev enthusiastically. Her mother gestured to the empty seat already fixed with food saved just for him. After all, Sev hadn't been considered a guest for a long time, he was already family to the Evans.

An hour later, all of them were standing before the train to Hogwarts with gobsmacked awe. Her mother cried as she said goodbye, kissing and hugging them all, making Sev pink with embarrassment. Petunia, acted like a dark cloud was over her head the whole time but stubbornly maintained her aloof front. Their father, the big softly, was probably the worst of them all, squeezing and hugging them to the point of embarrassment. When they finally got onto the train, all three of them stayed waving at the window until the station pulled away and out of sight.

With an almighty sigh, Hermione turned away from the window to face her sister and Sev.

"I hope they can make it out of the platform alright. Can you imagine if they get trapped in there because they're crying too much to find their way out?" Lily chuckled as she grabbed her stuff and lead the way to find a compartment. She stopped at the first one that had two boys their age in it.

"Hello, may we sit down with you two?" she asked politely. Hermione peeked over Sev and Lily's shoulder to see one boy with glasses notably closing his mouth before he scrambled to clean up the mess of candy he had made on the seat next to him.

"Sure! Sit!" He answered as they came in, Lily taking a seat next to the glasses boy and Severus taking a seat across from her. Hermione glanced over at the other grinning boy with grey eyes sitting across the glasses boy before she took a seat next to Lily. From this spot, she had the perfect a perfect view Sev's face as he picked on the dirty sleeve of his shirt.

"I'm James, by the way, and that's Sirius." James introduced rudely pointing at the pretty looking boy across from him. Lily beamed at them both.

"I'm Lily, this is my twin Hermione and our best friend Severus." Hermione smiled awkwardly as the two boys looked her over.

"Wow, you two don't look alike at all! Most magical twins are identical." James said, blinking owlishly from behind his glasses. Hermione huffed, eyes flashing and opened her eyes to speak but before she could Sirius spoke.

"I think you're wrong, mate, they look almost nearly identical. Same shaped eyes, nose and mouth. It's just the hair and eye color that different, really."

Hermione's face became infused at the boys' comment and the feel of their eyes on her. It was the first time a stranger had said that.

"Huh, I still don't see it." James responded, blinking owlishly from behind his glasses before turning his attention to Lily. "Anyway, how did you three meet? Unless, are you related to them— er, what did you say your name was again?"

"Severus," he answered though it sounded more like a growl. Hermione eyed Sev and could already see that this wasn't going to end well.

"We wouldn't be related to anyone else here. Lily and I are muggleborns. Sev just happened to live near us. He's the one who told us about magic."

"Wow, that's right groovy, that is! Mother would go _mad_ if she knew I was even looking at you guys! Do you think once we get to Hogwarts we can take a picture together, that way I can owl it to her tonight? With any luck she'll get it by morning and choke on her breakfast when she sees it." Sirius laughed at the mental image, not realizing the effect that his casual words were having on the other occupants.

Lily looked fit to blow a fuse as she glared at the laughing boy, which only got worse when James started chuckling beside her.

"So your mum is one of _them_ , then, is she? My family is blood traitors since we Potter's don't believe in any of that cadswollap. My mum comes from a family like that, though. They even blasted her off the family tree for marrying my dad."

"Sounds like something my family would do, what's her name?"

"Dorea, she was a Black before she married my dad." Sirius howled with laughter causing the rest to look at him strangely as he gasped out some words.

"That's my great aunt! We're bloody cousins, Potter!"

"Why is that so funny?" Hermione asked interrupting their laughter "Most pureblood are related in some way, after all, since there isn't a great number of them. And the Black family is part of the Sacred 28, I believe, right, Sev? So, of course, you're gonna be related to anyone whose pureblood in some way." The two boys blinked at her, James' face becoming chagrined at having to justify his amusement.

"Yeah but-" He started, then shrugged lamely.

"How do you know the Blacks are part of the Sacred 28, anyway? You did say you are a muggleborn right?" Sirius asked as Hermione immediately looked at Sev.

"Sev, of course. Sev's mum is a pureblood and she had a lot of books and things about that stuff."

"And you actually _read_ them?" James blanched as if the idea of reading was absurd and unusual.

"Merlin, that's like another form of torture for me. I hate all that blood purity shit." Lily's head snapped over to him at his words, her expression a perfect depiction of defiant anger.

"You could have fooled me," she hissed making Sirius's jaw drop, "wanting to take pictures of us like we're some sort of animal in a zoo!"

"I only meant it as a joke to tick off my mother!" he replied hotly, obviously not liking being labeled as blood supremacist.

"Well, it's not funny! How would you like it if I said I wanted to take a picture with you and send it to my parents so they can ogle at the freaky wizard!"

"Go ahead, It would give me a right laugh!"

"You're just an idiot!" She bellowed before abruptly getting up and stomping off. Not a second later Sev was off and out following after her.

Silence reigned in the wake of their departure as the remaining three just stared at the door.

"Your sister is bloody mad." Sirius said, making Hermione turn her eyes back on him. With a sigh, she shook her head.

"No, Lily's just really sensitive when it comes to this. She didn't realize that there would be people who wouldn't like us just because we're muggleborn and she's not used to not being liked. Now she's overly defensive about it." She understood this well about her sister since she too reacted overly defensive to anyone mentioning her looks compared to Lily's. "I, on the other hand, do not care so long as I get to learn magic."

"You're definitely a Ravenclaw." James said as Hermione just shrugged.

"Probably. What house do you think you'll get into?" She asked prompting James to smirk and shift his shoulders back, practically beaming with pride.

"Definitely Gryffindor! All Potter's get sorted into Gryffindor. It's in our blood."

"That's not true in the least. The house sorts you on your characteristics but ultimately its a choice." She stated matter of factly, surprised when Sirius suddenly launched toward her, reaching out and grabbing her shoulders to look at her square in the eye.

"What do you mean?" he asked frantically, eyes bright with hope.

"Whoa, calm down. I meant just what I said— you can choose what house you're sorted into." she said slowly, with a frown as he removed his hands.

"Oh thank Merlin!" he cried, falling back dramatically onto the bench. Hermione gave him a queer look as she ran a hand over the shoulders of her shirt to smooth down the creases he created. "I thought I was done for."

"What do you mean?" James asked as Sirius just basked in his relief.

"Well, like the Potters have always been sorted into Gryffindor, the Blacks have always been sorted into Slytherin."

"I take it then that you don't want to follow in your family's footsteps?" Sirius frowned as if she suggested he'd like to eat animal dung.

"I hate them. I don't want to be like any one of them! They're all barmy, they are."

"Yeah, mate. You better ask the hat to sort you into Gryffindor-"

"It's not the house's fault if your family is mad! That would be ridiculous! There is nothing wrong with being sorted into Slytherin!"

"Listen, er, what did you say your name was again?" James asked.

"Hermione!" she and Sirius responded at once, her with indignation and him with a matter-of-fact tone.

"Right. Now, there are some things you ought to know that only someone who grew up in the wizarding world understands," James started, not noticing at the alarming vein throbbing on Hermione's temple with her rising anger. Sirius however did and found himself shrinking back from the fury pouring off of her in waves.

"Oh, really? So tell me, _Potter_ , what is it that my feeble _muggleborn_ mind does not understand?" she bit out waspishly giving James pause.

"Look, I don't mean that in a bad way. There are just some things that are understood in our society. One— Hogwarts is the best Wizarding school in the world, no if and or buts and two," here he paused dramatically making Hermione's eyes roll. "Slytherins are evil." Hermione snorted just as Sirius nodded as if that is a solemn truth.

"Do you honestly believe that? Merlin was in Slytherin, did you know? Is he an evil wizard now?" James just shrugged. "There are a few good apples but most of them are evil."

"Salazar Slytherin even left a monster in the castle to pick off the muggleborns." Sirius chimed in, "My dad says he knows what it is since he was in school the last time the monster was loose but he only says that when he's bragging to his mates."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked as the two boys looked at each other, then her with nearly identical twin smirks. She gave her best glare in answer, crossing her arms.

"Don't tell me you don't know."

"Not in one of your books, is it, then?" They teased.

"Will you two just-" Her words were cut off when Lily came barging back in, still looking furious but now glaring down at Hermione.

"What are you still doing here?" Lily bit out unkindly as the other two boys in the compartment shot her annoyed looks.

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?" James asked to which Lily ignored. Hermione sighed meeting her twin's eyes blandly.

"I'm talking to them Lily, and you should too. I think you'll want to hear this." Lily immediately scoffed.

"I don't want to hear anything they have to say, especially _this_ one." She said jerking her thump at Sirius.

"Well I don't-" Hermione quickly interrupted Sirius before an argument could break out. She didn't want them to get sidetracked from the subject.

"I'm not going until I hear what they were going to say so either sit down or leave, Lily." Her twin huffed and seemed for a second as if she would just turn right back around, instead, she took a reluctant seat beside her so now Hermione was in the middle with Sev once again across from her. She met his eyes and gave an eye roll over Lily's behavior.

"Continue with what you were saying." She said, turning back to the two boys.

"I don't really want to tell you now with _her_ in here!" Sirius hissed making Lily snap to attention and open her mouth.

"James you tell me then. What is this about Slytherin's monster. You seem to know more about it anyway." She said quickly, deterring another bout of arguing. Sirius huffed but spoke before James could.

"Back when my father was in school, he said that the heir of Slytherin opened something called the Chamber of Secrets that holds a monster. All I know other than that is that a muggleborn girl died because of it."

"See? See? I told you Slytherin's are evil!" James blurted out as Hermione inwardly cringed, shooting a glance at Sev. He looked royally pissed at James words, his dark eyes burning with fury as he glared at the boy. If looks could kill James would be six feet under.

"There's also never, and I mean _never_ , in all the years that Hogwarts has been open, has there ever been a muggleborn sorted into Slytherin." Hermione tried not to feel so shocked at his words yet she just couldn't believe that there had been not a single muggleborn sorted into Slytherin. Lily's jaw dropped at the revelation as Sev's jaw ticked as he clenched his teeth.

"That can't be right," Hermione said, quickly running through all the texts she read on the subject of Hogwarts and the sorting ceremony in her mind. "There's got to be a discrepancy somewhere. There's no way that there wouldn't even be a single muggleborn sorted into Slytherin. The school has been open for thousands of years."

"No, I promise you, there has never been a muggleborn sorted in there. Just ask the sorting hat if you don't believe me." Hermione frowned, unable to retort. She was dying for a library, she needed to get her hands on previous student records and check if this could really be true.

"Some think that Slytherin put a curse on his house to make sure no muggleborn would ever get sorted into it."

"But why?" Lily suddenly broke in, obviously upset to hear such a thing. "Wouldn't someone as cunning and ambitious as Slytherin see that denying an entire group of people will only hurt it?"

"No, because Slytherin's are evil and bloody mad." James said again in that matter-of-fact tone. This time when she turned her gaze back onto Sev, he didn't meet anyone eyes, just clenched his fists as stared down at everyone's shoes. It wasn't long after that they were told to change into their robes since they would be arriving soon. A new bout of nerves encompassed the compartment, the only one at complete ease being James. He chatted non stop to the compartment at large, much to everyone else annoyance.

Hermione stared contemplatively out the window as the train moved, and was the first to see the castle flash through the trees. She sucked in a breath at the brief majestic sight before the dark dense forest cut it from view. She stared at it with a racing heart and nearly fell out of her seat when she saw dark shapes weaving through the trees. _Centaurs_ , her mind supplied as she made out their impressive forms in the darkness. She also recalled reading that a herd lived in the forbidden forest in Hogwarts: A History.

She nearly jolted out of her skin when a small, smooth hand reached out to hold her own. She turned her eyes onto Lily who looked at her with awe and nervousness.

"I can't believe it, Hermione, we're almost there." And indeed they were, she could hear the sound of the tracks slowing down, preparing to stop. She smiled at her sister, her chest erupting in a newfound sense of excitement.

She looked to Sev to find him smiling at them and she felt tempted to reach out and grasp his hand too. When the train came to a full stop Hermione felt sure that her heart was going to explode out of her chest. Lily practically vibrated with excitement by her side. She moved in a dazed sort of motion, things happening too fast for her to keep up. Rapidly talking students swarmed all around, their faces adamant as they spoke. She breathed deeply, inhaling the scent of pine forest and the sea. Senses overloaded, it was Lily's hand that anchored her.

"Fir' years over 'ere!" A booming voice cried, thundering footsteps following. Hermione glanced about to find a giant fellow walking just a short distance away, holding onto a lamplight. She moved toward him, Lily and Sev moving with her as they battled upstream against the sea of students, hissing out pardon me's as they went. She stopped before what had to be the tallest man she'd ever seen, however, he did not see her.

"Hello! Sir! We're first years!" she bellowed over the noise, finally drawing his attention.

"Hoho! Follow me then, that's righ'! o'er to those bout's o'er there."

The trio made their way over to the boats and hazardously climbed in. Once seated Hermione could not resist dipping her hand in the water.

"Wow, would you look at that. It's like something out of a fairytale." Lily breathed in awe as she stared up at the castle. Hermione nodded her head just as Severus let out a sigh. Hermione turned her eyes on his side profile to scrutinize him.

"What was that sigh for? We're about to enter the castle you've been dreaming about for most of your life. What could you possibly be upset about?" But even as she asked the question, she was already formulating the answer. _Its Lily, he knows that they're sure to be separated._ Confirming her thoughts, she watched Severus shoot a forlorn glance at Lily before gazing back at the castle.

She felt determination watching him. She didn't want to leave Sev alone and she wouldn't.

She reached out for his hand, eyes on the castle ahead. She could feel his eyes on her profile but did not turn to meet them. Eventually, he squeezed her hand back.

When the finally reached the other side of the lake, Sev quickly snatched back his hand and moved to help Lily off the boat. His effort was unnecessary as James got to her before he could and gallantly held a hand out to help her out. Hermione watched Sev's face drop as she climbed out unassisted.

Without waiting for any of them, Hermione merged in with the group of first years waiting before a stern looking woman with a large and pointing hat.

"First years, line up in two lines!" She ordered in a thick Scottish accent. Hermione stepped behind a tall dark skinned boy and waited for the next orders. The professor waited, peering over her glasses to the students standing attentively before her.

"You two back there," She called brusquely, eyes narrowing. "You're holding up the queue with you dawdling! Get in line at once!" Hermione turned to head to watch James and Sirius paste on faux contrite faces as they got back in line.

"Very good, now we're going to go inside where you lot will be sorted into your houses. Follow me."

Obediently, they followed and Hermione finally got her first glimpse inside the castle as they waited in a huge hall lined with moving portraits. Hermione gaped in wonderment. She gasped as she spotted the founding fathers unmoving portraits.

She leaned without looking, toward the person standing to her left. "Those are the founding fathers!" She whispered exciting, unable to contain the flow of information.

"They don't move anymore, but they used to talk to the students and tell them about the houses but in 1803 there was a fire that destroyed the original portraits so Headmaster Prince commissioned a world-famous muggle artist to recreate the painting. Unfortunately, no magic could restore them back into animated portraits. It's such a shame. I read all about it in Hogwarts: A history." Her gaze remained fixated on the grumpy looking expression on Salazar Slytherin's face and wished that she could ask him the questions whirling through her mind. She turned her eyes for the first time onto the person beside her only to find that person engaged in conversation with a girl behind her. The kept shooting her glances and giggling and Hermione realized that she had just made quite the fool of herself, talking to no one.

Blushing, she turned away and fixed her gaze to the front, not making eye contact with anyone and waited for the professor to return. She realized then that she hadn't even noticed the professor leave. She cursed her inattentiveness, wondering what information she might have missed due to her musings.

Luckily, the professor returned quickly and ushered them into the most extravagant hall she'd ever seen. Awed, Hermione gazed with wide-eyed wonderment at the ceiling reflecting the night sky and the floating candles. She felt a hot rush of greed at that moment; she wanted to be able to charm ceiling like that, wanted to spell items to float, wanted to wield that magic, wanted _all_ the magic.

Her eyes turned to the staff table and narrowed in on the sight of the formidable and powerful Headmaster. Her mind reviewed everything she had learned about him. Disgraced pureblood royalty, the headmaster rose to fame for his role in defeating Gellert Grindelwald and his discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood. However, gazing at him, Hermione felt a sharp and completely unwarranted feeling of distrust and wariness. She knew there was more to the Headmaster and vowed to discover it. She would not be an ignorant student under his tutelage.

Her eyes were abruptly drawn to a hat placed onto the stool next to where the Scottish professor stood when it bellowed at a long song. Hermione listened carefully to its message that urged house unity and, oddly, love.

When the song ended, the hall broke out into cheer that was quickly quelled when the professor began calling out names.

Hermione watched as one by one the students' were sorted into houses and took a tally on how many students were sorted into certain houses. Hufflepuff seemed to gain the most students with Gryffindor a close second, Ravenclaw third and Slytherin abysmally last. Only one person had been sorted there; a boy by the name of Francis Greengrass who wore a perpetual scowl on his face. She watched Greengrass as he took a seat at the Slytherin table and was immediately settled into the fold, his scowl sliding into an easy smirk as he nodded at a few others at the table.

"Evans, Hermione!" Her eyes shot forward at the sound of her name and she maneuvered between the other first years to the front of the hall.

Her heart wildly hammered in her chest, threatening to break through her sternum and fly away. She took a deep breathe while her back was still turned from the crowd and fixed her eyes on the hat. The hat hmmed and hummed at her approach and she straightened her spine at the perusal.

She carefully sat on the stool and waited to feel the weight on her head, keeping her gaze raised on the ceiling so as to make no eye contact.

" _Ah_ ," A voice spoke in her head, startling Hermione despite her suspecting this would happen. " _What an intricately compartmentalize maze_." She felt a force tilt her head to the slightly to the side in confusion. " _You have a thirst for knowledge that is unquenchable and infinite mirroring Rowena Ravenclaw herself. Yet that thirst comes from a need wrought with greed and ambition to have your intelligence viewed as superior, characterizing you greatly as Slytherin. You fear inferiority and brace yourself to face it head on, displaying unparalleled bravery like a Gryffindor. And then in the vestiges of your complex character you have a purity stemmed from a loyalty to those you love that is a force to behold, marking you as a potential Hufflepuff. Now, the question is, since you are illegible to be sorted into any house, which house will help you fulfill your maximum potential? Hmm, very complicated…_

There was a split second of silence where Hermione stewed in nervous anticipation when she felt an odd tingling sensation in her head, specifically in the area she knew to be the hippocampus. _"What is this?"_ She heard the hat muse and then the tingling sensation turned into pressure.

Hermione screamed as her mind was split apart. She felt pain, searing excruciating pain down her back and in her head. Memories invaded at an unstoppable speed, threatening to crush her. Faces she did not recognize swarm before her like a film put in fast forward, snippets of conversation in soothing familiar voices rang in her ears, emotions, consuming and rare overwhelmed her.

She wanted it to stop, she couldn't handle all of these sensations at once! She needed it to stop! Stop! STOP!

.

.

.

 _She was eight and crying in her mother's arm._

 _"_ _Darling, Emily is just insecure, you don't need to take her words to heart." Her mother soothing wiped away the tears pouring down her face._

 _"_ _But, when she called me an ugly bucktooth suck up, everyone agreed with her mum!" She cried._

 _"_ _Oh, honey." Her mother sighed and then her father came in, his smile revealing perfectly white and large buckteeth._

 _"_ _Us Granger's are notorious for being bucktooth suck-ups and proud of it! You keep on the family legacy, love and don't listen to those little wenches—"_

 _"_ _David!" Her mum hissed, despite the quirk of her lips. Hermione smiled at her parents' antics._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _She sat up with a gasp, taking her first breath of air in 23 days._

 _"_ _Basilisk!" She cried, eyes wide and body trembling. She blinked as she finally came to her senses to find Madam Pomfrey standing before her with a pitying expression marring her matronly face._

 _"_ _It's alright, Miss Granger. The basilisk has been killed."_

 _"_ _Harry, Ron?" She asked, her brain still trying to come to terms with her surroundings. She gazed around for her best friends, pushing down the disappointment that they weren't by her bedside._

 _"_ _Miss Granger, I'm sorry that your friends aren't here but they are actually attending the end of the year feast. I—"_

 _"_ _End of the year feast?" Hermione asked with wide eyes. "That can't be. That would mean…"_

 _"_ _Yes, you've been petrified for quite a while, Miss. Granger."_

 _She slumped, losing whatever adrenaline was driving her until that moment._

 _"_ _Here, drink this." Madam Pomfrey ordered, handing her a vial. Hermione numbly did as instructed and was hit with a rush of energy again. "It's a pepper-up potion. Now, if you'd like, you can still make it to the feast before its over."_

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _She watched with her heart in her throat as Harry refused to let go of Cedric Diggory's dead body. His sobs tore through her and she yearned to fly over to his side. She felt a hand clasp onto her own and turned her head to meet Ron's cerulean eyes._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _She watched as if in slow motion as the spell, a beautiful electrifying purple, collided with her body._

 _"_ _Oh!" she exhaled in surprise just before the pain registered with the rest of her. Before she could even scream her agony, she abruptly lost all consciousness._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _She felt the ground fall away from her feet. Hagrid clutched Harry's lifeless broken body while sobs wrecked through his great hulking massive frame._

 _"_ _No!"_

 _No, this couldn't be. Harry could be dead. She wouldn't allow it! Not after everything that they had been through!_

 _Dumbledore had been wrong if he thought this was the solution. Harry was not a martyr for a greater cause; Harry was the most amazing, optimistic, brave and pure wizard alive. He couldn't die, not like this._

 _Dumbledore was wrong and she would show him! She would not allow this to happen! Not Harry!_

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _She gazed at her mirror image._

 _"_ _You know, in my third year—"_

 _"_ _I know," Her other self said and Hermione stopped because of course she knew. She was talking to herself after all._

 _"_ _Bad things happen to those who meddle with time." They both said at the same time. Hermione smiled sardonically. Her eyes then fell to the baby in between them._

 _"_ _It's all for Harry. I…I love him more than anyone." She confessed, eyes watering with the onslaught of emotion. She was scared, though she never would admit it._

 _She turned her eyes to her doppelgänger. "I wish I could know you like you do me…Are you happy?" She asked needing the distraction. For a moment her other self looked lost and anguished._

 _"_ _I will be when its all said and done." Hermione nodded. No more stalling._

 _"_ _I'm ready."_

 _._

 _._

 _._

Hermione came to consciousness slowly. She felt, thankfully, no pain, if anything she felt well rested and energized. There were no voices and she felt no presence monitoring her; another lucky happenstance.

She opened her eyes and sat up in her hospital bed. A wave of melancholy hit her and she allowed herself a moment to imagine that Harry and Ron would come through that door any second to sweep her up in a hug and ask about her well-being.

She knew that in reality, that would never happen.

She took a deep breath before she rose from her bed, assessing the lack of strength in her legs. She moved to the window and appraised the height of the sun in the sky.

She determined a couple of things. One, she must have been out for more than a few days, judging by the struggle she felt to even walk. Two, it was mid-afternoon, probably lunch time.

"What in Merlin's name are you doing?" Madam Pomfrey's voice was shrill with outrage. Hermione gave a long-suffering sigh as she slowly turned to face the woman. "You should not be out of bed!"

She fussed over Hermione, coming over and offering her arm to help Hermione slowly trudge back to bed all the while bemoaning about Hermione's state.

"You really know how to make a first impression! Screaming bloody murder during the sorting ceremony of all things! Do you know what you did? I can't for the life of me even understand what happened. You actually glowed and you…well perhaps it's better for you to see for yourself. I just don't understand…"

Hermione sat quietly as Madam Pomfrey went on while performing all sorts of diagnosis charms.

"You seem to be alright now. I told the Headmaster I would alert him when you woke but, of course, I wouldn't contact him if you weren't fit to speak yet. Your results come back all clear, however, so I suppose I have no choice but to floo call him now. You stay right here, do you hear me? Don't you move muscle!" Hermione nodded and watched Madam Pomfrey sweep away with a flourish of her skirts.

She kicked her legs back up on the bed and sat back, waiting. She kept her mind purposefully blank, only allowing the most mundane of thoughts to surface like what she would like to eat for lunch and what Lily and Sev might be doing without her.

It wasn't long before footsteps broke the silence. Hermione fixed a polite smile on her face as Dumbledore approached. She noted the presence of the sorting hat in his hand.

"Miss Evans, I am so glad to see you awake. You have had many visitors eagerly awaiting your return to consciousness; they'll be so glad to hear you are well."

"Thank you, Headmaster." She responded

"Are you aware of how much time has passed since the sorting?" Hermione shook her head. "Alas, now I must be the bearer of bad news. You have been unconscious for nearly four days. As you already know, classes have started and you have yet to complete your sorting."

Hermione nodded, her eyes falling to the hat in his hand.

"Before we get to that, I need to ask you what you can recall from the sorting ceremony."

"Haven't you talked to the hat?" Dumbledore eyed her from over his square glasses.

"Yes, I have talked to the hat but I'd like to hear the events from your perspective." Hermione positively abhorred that ersatz congenial smile he gave her.

"I'm so sorry, Headmaster but I can't remember." Dumbledore peered over his half-moon spectacles at her. Hermione kept her face tight with worry.

"That is quite alright. My understanding of the events is the sorting hat found a barrier inside your mind. When the hat broke the barrier, it caused a magical surge that was too much for your body to handle."

Hermione clenched her hands together, eyes falling to her lap.

"Why was there a barrier in my head? Who would do such a thing?" Voice shaky, face ashen, she turned desperate and scared eyes to the Headmaster. "What does this mean?"

"As of yet, we don't know but you will be under observation till we are sure."

"What am I supposed to do in the meantime? I can't possibly remain in the hospital wing; I just started here and I haven't made any friends yet or met my professors or—"

"Let me put your mind at ease, Miss. Evans," Dumbledore interrupted, reaching out to pat her hand reassuringly. "You will still be attending classes, in fact, you are free to act in any way you feel fit. However, for a time, you are to come back here after dinner so that Madam Pomfrey may run a serious of tests and remain here to sleep."

"Oh," Hermione responded, eyes disappointedly lowering.

"Don't worry, it is only temporary and Madam Pomfrey will make sure you will want for nothing. She's under firm orders to tuck you in at night too." Hermione giggled. Dumbledore gave her an answering grin before he held up the hat. "Now, how about we get you sorted?"

Hermione sucked in a deep breath and nodded. Dumbledore leaned over and gently lowered the hat onto her head.


	2. A Terrible Mistake

AN: I'm sorry for the long hiatus with this story. I lost the plot and chapter outlines I'd written when my computer crashed a while back. It took a while, but I got inspired again and came up with a plot even better than before. I hope you all enjoy.

I am seeking a Beta for this story, one that is okay with tragedy violence and smut (for later chapters). Please PM if interested.

* * *

Hermione sucked in a deep breath and nodded. Dumbledore leaned over and gently lowered the hat onto her head.

'Hello again,' The hat greeted, voice eager. 'I see this time around, you are armed to the teeth against me.' It chuckled, pushing against her occlude shield.

'I know that you are more than just a sorting hat. You are an instrument of good. Please, you mustn't pry into my mind. I am a time-traveler and Dumbledore cannot know what the future holds.' She heard a sigh in her head.

'I will heed you. There are clearly forces beyond my understanding at work here.' Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. 'But that still leaves the matter of where to put you…?'

'I need to be nondescript while I work in the shadows.'

'Are you sure? You have such bravery inside you; such cunning and genius. Though I see it now... Above all else, you are loyal to your causes. I know just where to put you.'

"Hufflepuff!" The hat announced.

Hermione reached up to pull down the hat, giving it a little smile before handing it to Dumbledore.

Once more, the headmaster gazed at her over his half-moon glasses. "Very interesting." He mused. A pause followed his words before he smiled. "Well, I will have your timetable ready for you by morning. I'll leave you to rest and eat so you're sharp for your classes tomorrow." Dumbledore stood, purple robes with golden stars and swirls sweeping across the floor as he exited. Hermione watched him go with a blank face.

The next morning, Hermione received her timetable as promised along with her set of Hufflepuff robes and tie. She scanned the schedule and took note of how many classes were with the Gryffindors. Luckily for her, they shared only two; Herbology and Charms. Deciding to draw up a study schedule for herself, she pulled out a parchment from her bag. She had just poised her quill over her parchment when the hospital doors burst open. Lily and Severus came swooping in; Lily positively aglow with restless energy as she swept her gaze around the wing until she spotted her.

"Hermione!" With uncharacteristically teary eyes, Lily ran over and embraced her in a tight hug. "I was so worried! You have no idea! When I saw you go down and start to scream I thought my heart would burst!" Hermione wrapped her arms around her sister and patted her back comfortingly. Rarely did either sister display much affection. There wasn't ever a need to but it felt nice to be hugged and missed so reverently.

Her eyes met Severus' over her sister's shoulder to find him tense, a little frown marring his pale face. She wondered if his frown was due to envy or worry, she couldn't tell.

"How are you feeling? What did Madam Pomfrey say? Do they know what caused you to start glowing like that?" Lily asked as she pulled away. Hermione switched her attention back to her sister.

"No, they don't that's why I have to come back here after classes. I'm under observation." Hermione rolled her eyes. "I even have to sleep here which is ridiculous because I feel fine and my results showed no abnormalities."

"You have to sleep here?" Lily asked, surprised and indignant. "That's horrible! I was looking forward to staying up all night with you in the girl's dormitory!"

Hermione nervously bit her lip, eyes flickering from Lily to Sev. Sev raised his eyebrow at her. "Lily…" She trailed off, dreading her sister's reaction. Lily's face, noticing her hesitation, slowly morphed into apprehension. Hermione pressed forward. "I was sorted into Hufflepuff."

Lily stared at her for a moment before she gave a great bellowing laugh. "You? A Hufflepuff! Yeah right! I would have believed you more if you had said at least Ravenclaw. I would even believe Slytherin before Hufflepuff and they're a horrid lot. Sorry, Sev." Hermione's eyes shot to their male friend. Sev's jaw ticked, his eyes walled, obviously not pleased with Lily's assessment of his house. Lily's cavalier way of bringing up such a deep-rooted pain for Severus showed her complete inability to empathize with others. Tueny shared the same inability and it always irked Hermione. _I understand now why I'm not like them,_ she thought bitterly.

"You're being really unkind right now Lily. Hufflepuff is a wonderful house and Sev is in Slytherin so it can't be all that bad. You're being judgmental." Lily scoffed, not liking Hermione's scolding.

"And what would you know? You haven't even started classes yet! I've hung around the other houses and trust me, you are not sorted for Hufflepuff." Hermione crossed her arms.

"Well, the actual Sorting Hat thinks differently so I'm going to go with its opinion." Lily frowned.

"But…" Hermione could see that underneath her sister's ire, there was some real disappointment. It softened her and she reached out to grasp her sister's hand.

"Look, there's no need for us to fight about this. What's done is done. Now, I'd really love to get something to eat before breakfast ends." Hermione suggested, hoping to put this topic to rest. Lily was not ready to give up yet.

"Perhaps Dumbledore would let you get resorted. It's not too late, no one knows you yet and you can ask it to put you in Gryffindor this time." Hermione huffed, hopping off the bed to slide on her shoes.

"I'm not asking to be resorted. It's pointless; no student has ever been resorted in Hogwarts history and even if it was allowed, I wouldn't do it. I don't want to be resorted. I'm not brave or wild like you are. I would never fit in at Gryffindor." She lied, unnecessarily straightening her tie to avoid her sister's eyes. Lily grasped her upper arms, forcing her to meet her gaze.

"That's because you don't know better yet. Hufflepuffs have a reputation for being weak Hermione. They get pushed around by all the other houses, especially the Slytherins and I wouldn't be able to stand it if someone cursed you and I wasn't there to help." She turned her green eyes onto Severus standing behind Hermione. "You've seen it too right, Sev. Help me out here!" Hermione smacked Lily's hands away, her indignation spiking.

"Must you always drag Severus in the middle?" She huffed, drawing her sister's attention once more.

"I'm not!"

"Yes, you are and if you hadn't noticed by now, I'm more than capable of taking care of myself. I've had enough of this pointless argument; I'm leaving for breakfast with or without you!" With that, Hermione marched out of the hospital wing, nose in the air.

"Fine! Don't listen to me!" Lily called after her. Hermione was not surprised when neither of them tried to stop her.

Proudly, she entered the Great Hall, her Hufflepuff emblem on display. Eyes immediately landed on her upon her entrance, which was to be expected after the spectacle she made on the first day. Steadily, she made her way to the Hufflepuff's, assessing the table for a place to sit. She found a rather eclectic bunch, especially in the older years. There was a girl with red hair that was even frizzier than Hermione's own shaped around her face like a triangle with huge round glasses that reminded her of Professor Trelawney. Another older boy had a strange blue arrow that seemed tattooed on his completely bald head. Further down the table, a girl had her blonde hair styled so tall she looked like a cone head with eyeliner like Egyptian hieroglyphics. Across from her sat a boy who was built like a massive bodybuilder builder. It was easy to spot the rather plan and small first years among them.

Hermione took a seat next to a pretty dark-skinned girl, sharing a smile with her new Housemates.

"Hi, I'm Gal Shaklebolt," The girl introduced brightly. Hermione raised her hand to shake hers.

"I'm Hermione." Her eyes swept around the table as she began to pile food onto her plate.

"We've been dying to meet you! Aren't we lucky she ended up in our house?" A red-haired girl across from her said to a freckled and bespeckled boy sitting on her right. He nodded. "I'm Margarie Abbot and this is David Woods." She said enthusiastically pointing to herself and the boy on her right.

"Pleasure." Hermione returned with a smile. "And what are your names?" Hermione asked addressing the rest of the table. A blonde girl with small features that reminded Hermione distinctly of Luna gave her a sweet smile.

"I'm Pricilla Evergreen." Opposite to her, a slightly chubby boy gave a small wave.

"Dominic Fawley." Next to Gal, a boy with bright blue eyes and dirty blonde hair gave a friendly nod.

"Benedict Rowle. Nice to meet you." Hermione nodded back before taking a sip of her juice. So many familiar sounding last names.

"There's another boy, Alexander Butler, but he's sitting over there with his cousins. He does that pretty often." Margarie said pointing further up the table to a small brown-haired boy who sat dwarfed between twin goth girls that kept giving him more and more food to eat while they ate none. T _hey look like vampires_. Hermione shivered before returning her attention to those around her.

"We've all been curious as to what happened to you during the sorting." Margarie stated, her expression suggesting Hermione should offer some answers.

"It's a shame but I have no idea what happened. Madam Pomfrey said I'm under observation while they try to figure it out, just in case it happens again."

"Under observation? That sounds awfully serious." Gal said with a sincere look of worry.

"Not really. I get to go to all my classes, I just have to return to the hospital wing when they're all done."

"Does that mean you won't be coming to sleep in the Hufflepuff dorms then?" Benedict asked making Margarie gasp dramatically. Hermione nodded as she took a bite of her food.

"That's unacceptable!"

"Indeed it is," A more mature voice piped up from behind Hermione. She turned and found a gorgeous tall tan-skinned girl standing behind her, Head Girl badge pinned on her Hufflepuff robes. She smiled beatifically at Hermione with an easy, comforting air. "Hello Hermione, I'm the Head Girl, Zaina Shaqif."

"Hello," Hermione returned with her own smile. Hermione suspected it would be impossible not to smile at the other girl.

"I came because I wanted to introduce myself and show you how to get into our common room; get you all settled in with us. What a shame that you have to return to the hospital wing. Did they say when you'll be properly dismissed?" Hermione shook her head.

"Madam Pomfrey didn't give me an exact date but I think it should only be for another week."

"Well, I'll tell Madam Pomfrey to send for me so I can give you a proper welcome to your new home. In the meantime, I want you to come to me if you need anything, anything at all, alright?" And then, quite unexpectedly, she reached down and gave Hermione a hug that, even with the strained angle, did not feel awkward at all.

"I will," Hermione promised, inciting another dazzling smile for the Head Girl as she straightened. Then, in another unexpected move, she took a seat beside Dominic who looked gobsmacked at her proximity. Her eyes swept around the rest of the first years, as she leaned her head on her hand.

"I've been meaning to ask if you lot having an alright time so far?" She said.

"No, I mean yes, everything has been great!" Margarie eagerly answered, tripping over her tongue.

"I'm glad to hear that, Margarie." Zaina gave her smile as Margarie turned to whisper to David 'She knows my name' in an awed tone that everyone unfortunately heard. Zaina giggled looking around at the rest.

"How has school work been?" Zaina kept up the questions, calling out those who didn't speak by their names to directly ask them. Hermione was impressed that she remembered all their names even though they were mere first years.

Zaina gave a tiny gasp. "Oh, I completely forgot that I have a meeting with Headmaster Dumbledore about a petition for… it doesn't matter. I must be going now. I'll see you all later!" She left with a wave, leaving them all awed in her wake.

"She's amazing!" Pricilla breathed, receiving agreeing nods from the rest.

"Bet she could even make Filch love her." Gal added getting a laugh from the others.

"And she's Head Girl. Hufflepuff hasn't had the honor for at least seven years now, or so my brother says when he was insulting me for ending up in this house." Benedict continued, completely love-struck.

"Oh, why would your brother insult you for being sorted into Hufflepuff?" Her new housemates shared conflicted looks. Hermione knew why but knew as a muggleborn this would be an appropriate question to ask.

"Have you heard of the term purebloods?" Gal asked. Hermione nodded.

"Yes, I sat with James Potter and Sirius Black on the train ride. They clued me in on some of the prejudice between muggleborns and purebloods."

"Right. Well, my family is purebloods and they're the sort of lot that is very prejudice. They expect me to think the same way as them and to be their perfect little pureblood Slytherin like my brother but I take more after my Mum's side. She's a Prewett. I get a lack of slack for it at home." Hermione nibbled on her food contemplatively.

"That sounds really horrid for you. Are you going to get any trouble if you act too friendly with me?" Benedict shrugged.

"My brother moved out this year and my old man is never around so no. Mum would actually be proud, I think." Hermione smiled gratefully.

"That's good. How about you all?" She asked, gazing around the table.

"My family is pureblooded but they wouldn't mind at all." Maragarie stated proudly.

"I'm a pureblood too but my parents couldn't care less about what you are just so long as you have money." Dominic said with a sardonic grin and eye roll.

"My parents don't care at all" Gal provided, "though they prefer to hogknosh with ministry people. They're rather fond of power. My older brother is already the Head of his department in the Ministry of Magic and he's only 23!"

"That's quite an age difference." Hermione pointed out, privately wondering if her brother happened to be the Kinglsey she remembered. Gal shrugged.

"I was an accident. My parents only wanted a male heir since they didn't want to take time off from their jobs but then I came. A blessed happenstance, they like to say."

"My family are considered blood traitors although we're technically pureblooded too." Pricilla offered with a proud smile "They can't stand people who think they're better than others."

"What about you, David?" Hermione asked when he did not offer up an answer. David looked up from his desert to gaze at her.

"Oh, I'm not a pureblood." He said quickly as if Hermione had called him unexpectedly in class. "So my parents wouldn't care."

Hermione was going to ask more questions but lost her chance as breakfast disappeared signaling the lot to head off to class, Alexander coming to merge with their group.

The rest of the day, Hermione spent her time alternating between getting to know her housemates more and reviewing. She found that she was unable to suppress her swotish nature and wracked up quite a lot of points for Hufflepuff as she offered answers to Professors left and right.

Her housemate's reactions to her know-it-all nature shocked her. Unlike the Gryffindors in her true first year, the Hufflepuffs embraced her intelligence, constantly spewing compliment after compliment at her. It warmed Hermione immensely, having never experienced that before.

In classes with the Gryffindors, Lily had ignored her and she could hear snickering from the marauders' table every time her hand shot up. She had chosen to sit in the front, the marauders in the back and therefore she couldn't be sure if they were deliberately making fun of her. Knowing what she knew of them, however, she highly doubted that they hadn't been laughing at her.

Classes with the Slytherin were...admittedly tense and quiet. Severus hadn't spared her a glance, though, he hadn't spared anyone else a glance either, not even for his own housemates. He listened raptly without scribbling away at his notes like Hermione. The rest of the Slytherins either glared or gave them condescending looks. One of the Slytherin boys brutally bumped into David Woods once class had ended. Everyone had scrambled to help him since his things had fallen out of his bag at the impact; all except Hermione. She had stood in front of the group, staring the boy down. _Do it again and there will be consequences,_ her glare promised, _We will not be pushed around._ He had met her gaze as his cronies all laughed and oohed at her until they turned down another hall.

When the school day was done, Hermione had fully expected to go on her way and her new comrades another and received another shock when instead, they invited themselves to the hospital wing and didn't leave her side for all the hours before dinner, during dinner and an hour thereafter.

 _Exhausting! Being social is so exhausting_! She ached to adjourn to the library and hide away in a crook to read a book. Alone. _Surely, it won't happen again tomorrow,_ she hoped to herself. _They were only curious about the mysterious new student in their house. By tomorrow they'll be over it and then I could finally have time to plan since I've awakened._

However, the next day, bright and early mind, her housemates came to get her from the Hospital Wing. Hermione forced a smile as they energetically greeted her. Well, everyone except Alexander who looked like he'd much rather be in bed.

The day passed the same as it had before. Hermione was beginning to understand that there would be no escaping them. Hufflepuffs liked to be together all the time, the more the merrier. It wasn't only with the first years either, every older year seemed to be a tight-knit group with not a single person ostracized.

 _Perhaps I would have been better in Ravenclaw?_ Hermione couldn't help but think as the group once again invited themselves to the library with her. There was no way for her to accurately plan for the future with them around which they always were and when it wasn't them, it was Madam Pomfrey constantly at her side.

However, Hermione felt conflicted. She had never had such a sense of belonging, not so completely like this...not even with Harry and Ron. She knew she had to begin fixing the future but she liked her Hufflepuff comrades and was distracted by getting to know them.

Margarie, loud and bubbly, surprising didn't annoy Hermione even though she was admittedly ditzy. She was just too sweet to dislike, often sharing her things with others and she always had treats for everyone. She also was a phenomenal conversationalist and Hermione was aware that her upbringing made her the perfect hostess.

Pricilla, on the other hand, was the quietest among the girls and just when you thought she wasn't listening to the conversation, she'd say something so perfectly witty to let you know she was there. She was also quite serious about her schoolwork. Hermione quite liked that and usually partnered with her in their classes.

Gal liked to command the attention and often competed for it with Benedict. The two of them would open a discussion and then suddenly it would become a debate with Margarie the unofficial referee. It was entertaining to watch, to say the least. What impressed Hermione most was that they never seemed to get angry with each other, heated, yes, but never angry and it always ended with a smiling concession to the victor. It was almost flirtatious but at eleven Hermione wasn't sure if anything would come from it.

Dominic liked to talk as well and inserted himself seamlessly into any conversation, even debates between Gal and Benedict. Hermione liked him the most out of the boys, as he had a surprising sense of witty humor and was like the male counterpart to Margarie except less bubbly, which Hermione preferred.

David and Alexander talked the least. David was the only one who seemed to lack a sense of confidence and it left him too shy to speak. No one pressured him about it and everyone was patient with him for when he did choose to say something, he often stuttered. Margarie was never far from him but it was clear it did not stem from pity. In fact, only with Margarie was David able to be calm and crack a smile.

Alexander, however, just preferred to be silent. At first, Hermione thought he was rude as he would only shrug when the conversation was directed at him or just give a yes or no answer. The others had sensed this and Margarie had told her in quiet tones after a DADA class that all the Butler's were that way. They were a strange gothick wizarding family and there were rumors that when someone in their family turned twenty-one they had the choice to either be bitten by their ancient vampire grandfather or continue as mortals. No one dared to ask Alexander if this was true but Hermione found herself seeing him in a different, more tolerant, light.

She found him to be mysterious and she often wondered if he even liked their lot. He ate with his cousins most of the time but there were occasions when he chose to sit with them during meals. Hermione suspected he had a pattern for choosing when to sit with them and she was determined to find it out. She hadn't succeeded yet but it was only a matter of time.

Her friendship with the lot deepened further when Madam Pomfre finally cleared her from the hospital wing.

"Miss Shaqif will be here soon to escort you back to your common rooms as requested." Madam Pomfrey stated as she waved a final diagnostic charm at Hermione's head. "I want you to come straight back here if you ever feel the slightest bit abnormal, is that understood?" She said with a stern expression. Hermione nodded just as the Hospital doors opened and Zaina flounced inside with a bright smile.

"Good evening Madam Pomfrey. How are you?" The two older women exchanged pleasantries, Madam Pomfrey even cracking a smile for the Head Girl. Hermione was impressed.

"All ready to go?" Zaina asked blasting Hermione with the charm now.

They left with Zaina keeping a constant stream of conversation, asking all about Hermione's experiences so far.

They passed the portrait that would lead to the kitchens toward a darker corridor that had a stack of barrels toward the end. Zaina led her right to the barrels.  
"This is the entrance to our common room. Getting inside is quite easy, you just had to this barrel to the tune of Helga Hufflepuff. Watch." Zaina tapped on the correct barrel to the rhythm and then stepped back just before the lid slid open. "Now, it's important to remember the right barrel because the others are traps and you don't want to be smelling of vinegar or get crushed by an avalanche of plant fertilizer. Okay, now you try." Zaina said closing back the lid. Hermione did as told, correctly opening it the first try but Zaina had her do it a few more times before they finally stepped inside the long winding tunnel to their common room.

Hermione found the common room even homelier than the Gryffindor common room with all the plants and light that it exuded. She would have taken in more details but she was bombarded by cheers as her housemates, young and old greeted her.

"Welcome to Hufflepuff!" A full-blown party ensued after that and Hermione spent hours mingling with people from all the older years along with her friends. She made acquaintances with all the strange older years she had noticed on her first day and found that while their outward appearances could be intimidating and odd, they were all sweet and welcoming.

She hadn't thought it possible but, they got even closer once Hermione finally settled in the dorms. Now, the group didn't need to separate until bedtime and then back in the actual dorms, the girls liked to talk and play for more hours still.

With how absorbed she was with them, Hermione didn't have time to think of Voldemort or Lily; that was until they both forcibly reminded her of their existence one morning.

Hermione stared down at the Headline of her Daily Prophet she had subscribed to it the second day after she had woken up in the hospital and gasped with horror.

 **Hepzibah Smith Found Murdered, House Elf To Be Blamed!**

"What? What's wrong Hermione?" Maragarie asked from across the table as Pricilla and Dominic leaned over her shoulders to read.

Hermione's heart picked up as she stared unseeingly at the article before her, conversation sounded distant as it flowed around her.

 _How could I have been so stupid?_ She bit her lip to stifle a groan. Self-reproach stabbed Hermione on all sides. I _shouldn't have allowed myself to lose sight of what's important...I should have started hunting the Horcruxes the first night I had woken up!_

"Hermione," Hermione jolted as a hand grabbed her shoulder. She looked behind her to find Lily staring down at her with a slightly nervous expression. "Can we talk?" She asked, her eyes flicking up to gaze around at her housemates. "Alone?"

Snapping back to herself, Hermione nodded, folding her newspaper and grabbing her bag. She turned back to her friends and gave a little wave. "I'll see you all in class." Lily gave them a smile and then they set off together.

Her heart was still pounding quickly in her chest so she took a deep breath that had Lily assessing her from the corner of her eyes.

"Which class do you have first?" Lily asked

"Charms with the Ravenclaws." Hermione answered.

"Are you alright? You seemed really distracted at your table and you look a little pale." Lily said as they made the waited for the moving staircase to drop them off on the second floor.

"Er, yeah I was just thinking about classes."

"How is everything going?" Lily asked with faux casualness.

"Lovely, actually. Everybody in my house is so nice." Hermione responded, recalling their last conversation in the hospital wing and Lily's reaction to her sorting.

"Really?" Lily started, giving her a skeptical look. "Even that one boy, what's his name…? The one who's really pale and kind of looks like Severus." Hermione frowned.

"Alexander? Yeah, he's nice just in his own way."

"I heard that his family is a bunch of Vampires." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Who did you hear that from?" She asked, already taking a guess.

"Sirius and James." Lily answered, solidifying Hermione's suspicions.

"Well, that's a rumor. I'm sure it's not true-"

"You haven't asked him?" Lily asked making Hermione huff.

"Of course, I haven't! It's none of my business and even if his family was a bunch of vampires it hardly matters, I'd still like Alexander just the same." She said defensively. Lily gasped, reaching her hands out to pull Hermione to a stop.

"Do you fancy him?" She asked excitedly, her bright eyes lit up. Hermione's eyes widened in shock as her minds' eye flashed to Severus. But no, Lily didn't mean him she meant Alexander.

"What? Where'd you get that idea?"

"It's just the first time you talked about a guy that way and you were so protective over him-"

"I wasn't being protective per se, I was scolding you for being judgemental again." Lily's expression flickered with annoyance and Hermione took a quick breath. She didn't want to fight with Lily so soon after their last spat. "Sorry, I didn't mean that. I know you're just making conversation." Lily bit back her words as well and there was an awkward moment as they started walking.

"What class do you have?" Hermione asked, starting the conversation back up.

"DADA with the Slytherins." Lily made a disgusted face that made Hermione uncomfortable to see. She didn't like her sister's house ignorant behavior it reminded her too much of real bigotry.

"You should really stop reacting the way to the Slytherins, Lily. How do you think it will make Severus feel?" Lily's hands clenched as she turned her glare onto Hermione.

"Actually, it doesn't affect us at all. I've been hanging out with Severus almost every day even though we're in separate houses which is more than you can say! I wonder how long it would have taken you to come and talk to me if I hadn't come to you first!" Hermione was smacked with the truth of her words. Guilt flamed her face as she looked away from her sister.

"You're right. I deserved that."

"Ha! Imagine that, the great Hermione Evans finally admitting she's wrong about something!" Hermione restrained from another eye roll.

"Well, I'm not all wrong. You still shouldn't be so antagonistic to Slytherins." Lily threw up her hands.

"That's it, I don't even know why I bother! I've had enough!"

"Lily…" Hermione started a little regretfully but she stopped at Lily's fierce glare.

"You know what your problem is, Hermione? You think your so brilliant because you can memorize a textbook and get good grades but your not brilliant, you're a narcissist! And I hate to break it to you but you're not always right! Your condescending and mean and people aren't going to like you for it!" Without another word, Lily turned and stomped away.

Hermione sighed, her gaze falling to the floor feeling torn. _That wasn't the way I wanted that to turn out._ She wondered why she couldn't ever just have a simple conversation with her sister. She hated their constant bickering yet she also hated the idea of letting Lily get away with the things she gets away with. _Is this really what you should be worrying about right now?_ Her inner voice asked. Hermione raised her head, determination in her eyes as she before the winding tower of moving staircases, her eyes landing on the seventh floor.

No, it was certainly not.

She went through the day as usual but her mind was filled with thoughts on the Horcrux accessible to her. She plotted about how to retrieve it and just went with the obvious, sneak out after curfew option. _But what if I'm caught with it by a teacher or a prefect?_ Hermione wracked her brains for a foolproof solution but kept coming up empty-handed.

 _I could try to borrow the cloak from James,_ she mused during lunch. Yet, she knew that wouldn't work either since she wouldn't have any way of knowing about the cloak in the first place. She supposed knicking it from him would be plausible but there were risks involved with that too especially with such tricky group as them.

By the end of the day, she had gone around in circles and just decided to ax going after curfew altogether. _But then how can I get it without alerting anyone?_

In the end, she decided to go bright and early the next day. There was no one patrolling at five-thirty in the morning and even the early birds didn't usually rise until six. She got dressed quietly, eyeing her dorm mates for any sign of awareness. If she could have felt anything other than apprehensive fear she would have laughed at the way Margarie was sleeping. She was not an elegant sleeper with her limbs all contorted, her hair all a mess around her head and her face smushed.

She crept out of the dorms stealthily and as she had suspected, all was quiet. She continued toward her destination cautiously, her heart nearly seizing with every sound.

When she finally got to the Room of Requirement she walked in front of it three times, muttering about the room of hidden things.

It was not in flames as it had been when she had left it last. _But of course it's not. That hasn't happened yet and nor will it!_ The thought shook off some of her trepidation as she opened the door and stepped inside.

Her eyes swept around the piles of stuff and she set to work finding the diadem amongst it all.

She didn't have to look for long. Like a siren's pull, the felt the kinetic yet insidious energy beckoning her. When her eyes finally landed on it, her heart jolted in her chest. She wondered, distantly, why she could sense it so strongly this time around. She hadn't in the past, it was Harry who usually was drawn to them.

 _The darkness in me is much stronger than back then. After what I did to get here..._ Hermione had to let the thought drop. If she thought about it at all, she was afraid she'd go mad. _No, I mustn't lose my focus._

She felt hesitant to touch it. She didn't want to feel the darkness inside slithering over her conscious with its treacherous allure. Instead, she used a nearby rod to slide it into her bag.

She took a breath and quickly marched out of the room. She went back to the dorms feeling lighter despite the metaphorical heavy load she now carried. Once inside the Hufflepuff common room, Hermione could hear sturring from the early risers and all but ran back to her room. Luckily for her, her roommates were still in deep slumber. Hermione crossed to her nightstand and pulled out a scarf to wrap around her hand before reaching into her bag to pull out the diadem.

 _It really is beautiful. It's almost blasphemy how he sullied it._ She thought as she raised to diadem toward her face to inspect it further. Her eyes then trailed to her friends.

The sight of the peacefully sleeping girls made Hermione realized that she had made a miscalculation. She had originally thought she could just store the diadem in her trunk and while she found a suitable means to destroy it. She remembered, rather late, that the Horcrux could try to lure one of her roommates to find it in an attempt at possession.

 _I either need to destroy it or put it back until I can._ She sighed just as Pricilla's alarm went off. Quickly, Hermione placed the diadem in her nightstand just as Pricilla sat up with a yawn. With her heart in her throat, Hermione stepped toward her bed, hoping to not draw any attention while unwrapping the scarf from her hand.

"You're up rather early," Pricilla said around a yawn. Hermione tried to give a smile but it came out as more a shaky quake of her lips.

"Yes, I just couldn't sleep with all this school work we have due soon." Hermione lied, hoping her voice didn't sound as strained as she felt.

"That's why I woke up early too." Pricilla said with a nod as she slid out of bed, blearily making her way to the bathroom.

Hermione glanced anxiously at her nightstand and debated to herself whether if she should risk moving the thing to a better location. She was just about to do so when Pricilla's head popped back into the room causing Hermione's heart to stop in her chest.

"Hey, do you mind grabbing my school shirt from my trunk right there? I forgot to bring it."

"Yeah, sure." Taking the opportunity to recover from her fright, Hermione crossed the room and opened said trunk, pulling out a crisp white shirt and handing it over to her friend. Before Priscilla could say a word of thanks, a muffled voice let out a loud groan.

"Ugh, you two are so loud!" Gal groused, sitting up in her bed with a dramatic huff. "I thought we all agreed; no talking before seven!" Hermione ducked her head in apology.

"Sorry, we all know how much you need your beauty sleep," Pricilla chimed in with a grin, ducking back into the bathroom when Gal through a pillow across the room.

"Dammit, now I'm up," Gal whined, uncharacteristically discombobulated in the mornings. "What were you two saying earlier about school work?" Gal asked, turning her sleepy eyes onto Hermione.

"Oh, nothing, I was telling Pricilla that the reason I woke up so early was to do some homework-"

"I'll join you," Gal said getting up from her bed with a stretch. "I was actually meaning to get your help on that Charms paper." Hermione bit her lip, her eyes snapping back and forth between her dresser and Gal.

"Well..." Hermione didn't want to admit that she couldn't help her friend even though she was itching to fix her dilemma. Gal didn't seem to notice Hermione's hesitation as she barged into the girl's bathroom, ignoring Pricilla's screeches as she brushed her teeth.

 _I'll take care of it straight after morning classes. I'll skip lunch and run back here to put it back,_ Hermione promised herself as she sat back down on her bed, her knee bouncing with nerves.

When the rest of the girls were ready, Hermione went with them, comforting herself that she would rectify her situation. Margarie met up with them at breakfast acting like her usual energetic self. Throughout classes, Hermione's mind kept straying back to the Horcrux in her room. _Perhaps I should check Professor Slughorn's storage before I bring the Horcrux back._ _He has friends all over, maybe he procured some basilisk venom...If he doesn't have any, I'll just return tomorrow, bright and early._

Despite her earlier thoughts, Hermione found herself making excuses to her friends come lunch and returning to their rooms. Her eyes fixated on her dresser as soon as she walked in. Before she had even been conscious of doing so, she had crossed over and held it once again in her hands. Her eyes stared into the diamonds, fascinated at the kaleidoscope of colors they made when she moved it this way and that.

As she held it, she felt a pull, not toward the thing itself but the soul trapped inside. _I wonder how he must have felt when he first got his hands on it...Had he put it on? Had Rowena herself spoken to him the infinite wonders of the world?_ She wanted to ask him, wanted the trapped soul inside to tell her about the experience, to share the knowledge he had received.

 _I can find out. I can find it all out!_ Without a second thought, her arms raised and the delicate piece of jewelry landed on the vast expanse of her bushy hair.

"Hello," a genial, rich baritone sounded from next to her. She jumped, her wide eyes landing on a tall form leaning elegantly against her bedpost.

 _What have I done?_

Tom Riddle stood more terrible and beautiful than Hermione could ever imagine. His face, sculptured with high cheekbones, straight, perfectly angled nose and full lips were devastating; a mockery to the terrific evil Hermione could feel coming off from him. He was dressed in fine robes, not even out of style in this era, and gazed at her with eyes that were such a deep blue they seemed violet.

"How interesting..." his voice carried over to her ears like a fine wine, drowning out the sound of her own pounding heart. "What is your name?" A stuttered breath escaped her at his question.

Her name. Tom Riddle just asked her for her name because, of course, he had no idea who she was! He did not know of Hermione Granger and the lengths she had gone through to destroy him, nor did he know of Hermione Evans who would execute her plans...He did not know her... _I've traveled back in time because of you...have killed because of you..._ She felt like she could laugh, a sure sign of hysteria. Her eyes shot to his, hard, fierce, hateful.

His horrible face darkened the longer she remained silent. "I asked you a question." Gone was the cool indifference to his tone to be replaced with a harsh demanding sound that promised retribution.

"I do not answer to the likes of you!" She cried. In a split second that flashed before her eyes, Tom Riddle's face twisted into a sneer as he came to her, his hand snaking out to her grasp her forearm in a bruising grip.

"Stupid little Hufflepuff-" But the rest of his words were cut short as she jerked away from him with a loud scream and ferociously ripped the diadem off her head, blindly throwing it to the other side of the room without another thought. Her heart exploded in her chest, beating rapidly in her chest with adrenaline.

Breathing heavily, she squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to calm down even as her mind whirled thinking about the encounter. _How could I have been so stupid_ , she thought, her body trembling as she recalled those violet eyes as he glared at her. His touch had burned. Hermione wrapped her arms around herself, in a futile attempt to hold herself together. _I have to destroy him! I have to-_

"What in Merlin is going on here?" Hermione jumped, her heart in her throat as she turned to find a crowd at the door. Pricilla, Margarie, and Gal all stared around in shock as Zaina stood with her wand raised in front of them all, her mouth hanging.

Hermione couldn't understand their expressions until her eyes fell back toward the beds. All the pillows were destroyed, the beds moved hazardously away from her and even the trunks and nightstands seemed as if they had been propelled away. _The diadem!_ Her panic threatened to choke her as she turned back to the group speechless.

"Hermione?" Margarie asked, voice timid. A rather serious expression took over Zaina's face as she dropped her wand arm and gazed at Hermione.

"Does this have to do with what happened during the sorting? I think you should see Madam Pomfrey..." She asked.

"No!" Hermione burst out. She wavered on her feet after her exclamation as she raised a hand to her dizzy head.

"What is that on your arm?" Gal suddenly shouted. Hermione's eyes snapped open, unable to recall when she had closed them, to find a red mark on her forearm in the shape of his hand. Oh Merlin, no! Her shaking legs crumbled and she fell harshly on her knobby knees.

"Hermione!" She heard distantly. _I've made a terrible mistake!_ She wanted to scream as her eyes shut again and she could feel unconsciousness slowly trying to submerge her. _I knew better! I thought I wouldn't be tempted like Dumbledore! I thought I could resist!_

"Hermione!"

Her heart ached in failure. _How am I going to fix this? They're going to find the diadem...They're going to touch it! Someone will_...She was fading, she knew. Someone will get hurt.


	3. Guilt

Hermione woke up abruptly. Her eyes took in the seemingly empty Hospital wing, the sunlight streaming in and the hushed voices coming from the other side of the hall in seconds. Her mind did not waste any time reminding her of what she had done. _I must find the Horcrux!_

Her thoughts were a whirl of panic and anxiety. She felt like she was going to be sick, a hot terrible knot in her stomach. She scrambled to put on her shoes, grateful that whatever time of day it was, no one was waiting for her at her bedside.

"Miss Evans?" Madam Pomfrey appeared by her office door, Professor Sprout by her side. Hermione did not stop even at the sight of them and continued running to the hospital doors. _I have to find it! I have to find it!_

"Miss Evans, stop!" She heard Professor Sprout cry.

"Where are you going? You have to be checked!" Hermione intended to ignore them and ask for forgiveness later but the choice was taken away from her at Madam Pomfrey's cry of _'Petrificus Totalus!'_

 _No! I have to leave right now! I can't waste any more time!_ A desperate keening sound escaped her.

"How incredibly rude, young lady!" Madam Pomfrey scolded as she levitated Hermione's unmovable form back to bed.

"I'm rather surprised, Poppy. Miss Evans is an upstanding and well-behaved student..." Hermione's eyes flicked between the two older witches wishing they would just release her and feeling tears spring to her eyes when they didn't.

"Well, I'm hard-pressed to believe that after what she just pulled! Now," Madam Pomfrey turned her fierce eyes onto Hermione, "You are going to stay right here once I release you, is that understood? I have no qualms petrifying you again if you don't listen." She warned before finally undoing her spell.

Hermione immediately sat up as she blinked away the remaining tears. "Please, I have to go back to the dorm-"

"No," Madam Pomfrey interrupted, waving her wand all the while, "What you have to do is tell me what happened that brought you back to my wing."

"Yes, Miss Shaqif reported that the dorms had been in a disarray..."

"Not to mention you had a horrific bruise in the shape of a hand on your arm!" At the reminder, Hermione's eyes fell to said arm to find undamaged skin.

"Was it perhaps a Slytherin?" Professor Sprout asked delicately looking pained for even suggesting it. Hermione shook her head.

"No, please listen. It's my fault! I discovered something I shouldn't have and when I tried to undo it, it caused that disaster and...I have to fix it! Please let me leave. I have to speak with Headmaster Dumbledore." Madam Pomfrey's face turned suspicious at her words. Professor Sprout, on the other hand, looked beside herself with worry.

"I'm afraid the Headmaster is not here and will not be returning for another day." Professor Sprout informed her. Madam Pomfrey handed Hermione a small vial of something Hermione did not recognize.

She didn't have time for this. She needed to be released and then she needed to put the damn Horcrux back!

"What is this?" Hermione asked, holding the tiny bottle away to make it clear she would not be drinking it without answers.

"You're blood levels are very high, Miss Evans. This will help regulate them among other things." Hermine frowned.

"As in a calming draught. That makes you sleepy and I don't have time for that! I need-"

"Enough! How about you tell us what it is that you discovered that has you in such a state." There was the crux of Hermione's issue. She could not very well inform the two women of the existence of Tom Riddle's Horcrux, it would lead to questions she couldn't even begin to lie her way through. She just needed to go. She wished she could just stun them, however, her magical core reflected her maturity and therefore she could not perform spells too advanced for her age like the stunning spell.

Utterly frustrated, Hermione sat with tight lips she tried to think of what to do while staring at her hands.

"Miss Evans..." Taking a deep breath, Hermione raised her head, deciding to go with half-truths.

"I found some strange crown in a room on the seventh floor. It seemed harmless and I wanted to examine it so I took it back to the dorms but it wasn't just a normal piece of jewelry. It will hurt someone, I just know it." Hermione's fists clenched at her sides as Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout exchanged glances.

"Judging from what you said, this does not sound like something a first-year like yourself needs to worry about any longer. Why don't you let-"

"No! You don't understand! I need to talk to Headmaster Dumbledore. Surely, someone must have a means to contact him and bring him back from wherever he's gone to. He is the only one who can fix this."

"Miss Evans, please calm down or I'll be forced to give you that potion myself." Madam Pomfrey said sternly, pointing a finger in Hermione's face.

"Can't I be dismissed? There's nothing wrong with me and I just want to go back to the dorms." Desperation bled into Hermione's voice as she wrung her hands.

"And how would you know there's nothing wrong with you, Miss Evans? That is my job and I am not convinced." _I don't care if you're convinced!_ Hermione wanted to bellow. "How about you drink up that potion and then Professor Sprout and I will discuss the best course of action."

Wasting no time, Hermione swung her head back, downing the calming draught. As expected, not even a moment later, Hermione's limbs began to relax and her vision became fuzzy. She closed her eyes. _Don't fall asleep! Don't fall asleep!_ She chanted as Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout moved away from her bed, assuming that the potion would leave her unconscious.

"Merlin, that was a lot." Professor Sprout breathed as Madam Pomfrey snorted.

"I'll say! That little girl needs to have an eye kept on her."

"Do you believe her, about the cursed jewelry? It wasn't reported by Miss Shaqif." Hermione clung to that sentence, not listening to the rest of the two witches' conversation as they headed back to Madam Pomfrey's office.

Shooting back up, Hermione stuck her fingers in her mouth and forced herself to regurgitate most of the potion. Quickly, without cleaning up the mess, Hermione ran out of the hospital wing and to the Hufflepuff dorms, grateful that the two were in close proximity to each other. She scrambled inside, her eyes ignoring the bemused stares of some straggling older Hufflepuff students.

She took the girls' staircase two at a time and burst into her shared room. Taking in the tidy dorm, she ran to her bed and searched for the diadem, her heart and mind falling further and further into disarray as she continued to search but not find it. She trashed the room looking through her roommate's things until the dorm looked almost as bad as it had after her encounter with Riddle.

"It's not here." She whispered to herself with horror, thrusting her hands into her hair. What would she do if she couldn't find it? What would she do if Riddle possessed someone because of her stupidity? _No, I have to calm down! It has to be somewhere in this castle!_

Taking a deep breath, Hermione recalled the encounter. The look on her friend's faces, the look on Zaina's face.

 _Zaina!_ Of course! She was the one who had discovered her and reported everything to Professor Sprout. Adrenaline pumped through Hermione as she gave a laugh of relief. Zaina must have it. With that knowledge, Hermione bounded up the girl's staircase to the seventh year dorms. _I can fix this!_ She felt dizzy at the realization. Entering the room, Hermione could not tell which bed was Zaina's and decided to go through them all. She marveled at how trusting Hufflepuffs were that not a single trunk was warded.

Using this to her advantage, she searched high and low, her elation decreasing with each upturned trunk and dresser that turned up empty. Her anxiety began to grow as she thoroughly went about the room. Only when she had checked every nook and cranny did she have to admit to herself the truth. _It's not here._ Her dizziness returned tenfold and she was forced to take a seat, her head falling to her hands. She had failed.

* * *

"That's it!" Hermione blinked back to awareness at the sound of Dominic's voice. She was sitting in the common room in the corner closest to the entrance. It had come to be their spot since the beginning of term. It was the only place in the common room that wasn't already claimed by the older years and could fit all of them on chairs and benches.

She glanced up at Dominic to find him glaring fiercely back at her. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Er," She dumbly checked behind her to make sure it was she he was talking to.

"You haven't had a proper meal in days and you're barely talking even in classes and we've had enough!" Dominic bellowed, waving a finger in her face. Hermione's expression tightened as her year mates nodded in agreement with him.

"You have to tell us what happened that day we found you." Gal said, ducking her head closer so that the other Hufflepuffs could not hear.

"Yeah, you haven't been the same since then-" Margarie started to be cut off by a suddenly emotional Pricilla.

"We can help you, you know? That's what Hufflepuff do, we help each other no matter what!" The group nodded in solemn consensus. Hermione couldn't maintain eye contact with any of them as guilt slammed through her. _I don't deserve their kindness. If they knew what I unleashed onto the school they wouldn't be saying this to me._

She was forced to look up when Alexander of all people, reached out to grasp her hand. His hand felt cold and soft, his grip surprisingly strong. She raised her eyes to his and she couldn't help but marvel at the empathy she found there.

"You cannot solve your problems on your own," He said, his voice ringing true. She felt as if he knew more than she dared to say and wondered again about this mysterious boy.

Perhaps because it had come from him, Hermione felt compelled to release some of the weight that had been sitting on her shoulders. "Not here," she said gazing around the room. "I don't want anyone to hear us."

"How about we go to the boy's dorm." Margarie said eliciting a scandalous gasp from Gal.

" _Unsupervised_?" She said horrified. Pricilla shot her a look as the group stood up.

"Your pureblood is showing and it's not a big deal. No one is going to run off and tell mummy and daddy on you." She said making David, Margarie and Benedict chuckle. Hermione could not join in on the friendly banter as they went up the boy's staircase, not when she was so troubled by what she was going to say. Dominic and Alexander seemed to sense this as they walked on either side of her and sat beside her on the floor once they entered the boy's room.

Gal chose to sit with a straight spine on the edge of one of the beds, too proper to sit on the floor but too wary to relax on the bed. Margarie, plopped down with familiarity and ease onto the bed across from Gal, a smile on her face as David sat next to her. Benedict and Pricilla took the other two beds, leaving Hermione in the center on the floor.

Hermione swallowed hard as they all waited for her to begin. _I have to be careful, I don't want to endanger them but I do need help._

"I..." Hermione faltered and bit her lip as she tried to gather herself. "I made a mistake. A while back I took something that is dangerous without thinking it through and since that day you girls found me, it's been missing. I'm so scared that someone else has taken it and because they don't understand what it is, they're going to get hurt and it's going to be all my fault." Hermione tried to control the urge to sob.

"What is it?" Benedict asked, his face hard and serious.

"It looks like a tiara but it's not. It's cursed and if someone has it they're going to be compelled to unleash something horrible."

"Like what?" Margarie asked with morbid sounding curiosity.

"A monster," Hermione responded with a shiver thinking of both the eyes of the basilisk and Tom Riddle. "It will attack the students in the school. Muggleborn students like me."

"How do you know this? Did this tiara somehow tell you?" Hermione gave a nod at Dominic's question, watching him as he bit his lip in thought, his brow furrowed.

"And if we get it back, how can we stop it?" Alexander asked drawing Hermione's gaze.

"I'd put it back where I found it. It won't be able to hurt anyone there."

"How do you know that? You found it after all so who's to say someone else won't?" Hermione blinked at Gal who looked troubled and frustrated.

"Why wouldn't you give it to Headmaster Dumbledore? He's the most powerful wizard since Merlin-" Benedict asked without giving Hermione a chance to respond to Gal.

"I was just about to ask that!" Margarie piped in.

"Dumbledore won't be able to destroy it either and he might get tempted like I did. It's better off where I found it, trust me no one will be able to get to it-"

"That just doesn't make sense! How would Headmaster Dumbledore not be able to destroy it?" Gal cut in.

"Yeah, and how do you know if he can't?" Benedict added. Hermione remembered how Dumbledore had not provided any means to destroy them when she, Harry and Ron went hunting for the Horcrux. How he did not teach them fiendfyre nor did he provide them basilisk venom simply because he just did not have the means. _But he had died shortly after...maybe this time will be different...maybe this time he can help._

However, it felt hard to believe that. "Maybe you two are right. Maybe he could destroy it but even still, it doesn't help me now. I can't give it for him to try and destroy if I can't find it."

"Right," Gal said, her gaze thoughtful as she chewed her bottom lip. Pricilla snapped her fingers in realization.

"Zaina was with us and she fixed the dorm afterward so she must have seen it."

"I thought that too," Hermione said pained at the remembered disappointment. "I snuck into her dorm but it wasn't there. I checked all over."

"M-m-maybe we can get s-s-omeone older to try and s-s-ummon it," David suddenly added, looking wide-eyed but determined.

"It's a good idea, David but this isn't something that can be summoned."

"Damn," Dominic cursed.

"We'll just have to ask around," Benedict stated, looking determined. "I can ask some of the older years I know."

"Me too," Alexander said making Gal and Pricilla nod.

"We'll have them check around their dorms." Gal said.

"And for those that aren't checked, we'll just have to sneak in and check them ourselves." Pricilla stated. Hermione gnawed at her lip as her friends shared determined looks with each other.

"I appreciate the help but it's dangerous. We can't draw too much attention to it and also it can't be touched. I don't really want you guys around it-"

"Well, we're not about to just give up!" Dominic hissed. Hermione knew that. As soon as she had admitted the problem she had involved her friends and although that scared her, not trying everything to find the Horcrux scared her more.

"So, everyone who has connections to older years will tell them that we need to find a tiara-" Gal started but Hermione quickly cut her off.

"But not to touch it! if they do find it then they need to use something else to put into a bag or something. They can't touch it with their bare hands. Make sure whoever you all tell knows that. It's very important." Hermione stressed gazing around at them.

"Okay. Don't touch the tiara, got it." Pricilla said with a salute. Hermione squeezed her eyes shut. _I really hope I didn't just make another mistake telling them._

A warm hand settled on her back to rub soothing circles. Hermione looked up into Dominic's eyes.

"It's going to be alright Hermione." She gave a wane smile in response.

* * *

On Halloween, the first message was written in blood on the wall across from the grand staircase.

Hermione read the message and felt all the blood drain from her face. _The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir...Beware._

It was exactly the same message as before however the penmanship was not Ginny's childlike handwriting but written in perfect script. She stared at the lettering as the students erupted into conversation, the professor's trying unsuccessfully to gain control.

"Is it...?" She heard from beside her. She turned her head to the right to find the pale faces of Dominic, Pricilla staring back at her.

"Yes, it is." She faced forward, hearing Gal and Benedict whispering to each other to her left, trying not to think too much as Margarie started crying.

Headmaster Dumbledore used a Sonorous Charm to reign everyone in and organize the students. In a blur, Hermione and her group were ushered back to their common rooms.

Feeling numb, Hermione said nothing as an impromptu meeting with Professor Sprout began once inside the common room. She watched as scared students asked Professor Pomfrey question after question that she intimately knew the answer to. _How could I have done this? I came back to make it better and all I did was make things worse._

Hands reached out on either side of her to grasp her own, a silent reassurance from Gal and Dominic. She squeezed them like a lifeline as the night went on.

* * *

The very next day, using a quick pro quo quill, Hermione penned an anonymous letter to Headmaster Dumbledore.

 _The creature in the Chamber of Secrets is a basilisk. The only entrance is in moaning Myrtle's bathroom but it requires a parseltongue to open it._

Hermione figured it was best to be short and directive as she sent off the letter with an owl. It was time to admit that she had lost control over the situation and seek some help. Her friend's connections were coming up as dead ends and although her little group and done some scouring of their own, they were coming up empty-handed every time and now with the Chamber open, lives were at stake, not just the person possessed.

Hermione wondered about the quickness that Riddle had possessed said person. She remembered with Ginny, it had been a while before the Chamber had opened and she suspected that the quickness meant a powerful magical core for Riddle to feed on. She felt sure that it had to be Zaina so she had employed her friends to ransack the dorm again to no avail.

Unable to find the Horcrux, she was left with the hope that at least Dumbledore would be able to somehow stop the basilisk.

"Did you tell him?" Benedict asked later in the Great Hall. Hermione nodded.

"Yes, also I have a request to make but I'll tell you all back in the dorms." The group nodded and once dinner was finished they made their way to the boy's dorms, which was quickly becoming their meet-up spot.

Taking a seat on the nearest bed this time, Hermione gazed seriously at her friends.

"I want you all to ask your parents to buy you a compact mirror and Gal, Hugh, since you guys come from money, could you ask your parents for a two-way communication mirror?" Hermione asked, turning her gaze onto the duo. The two nodded.

"I'm sure my mum will by one for me but what do I tell her?" Gal asked.

"Tell her any sort of lie, it's not that hard," Benedict said rolling his eyes, unable to duck away when Gal plummeted him with a pillow.

"I'm sorry if I'm not used to lying. Not all of us can be as brilliant at it like you, you pathological liar!" Hermione ignored their antics as Pricilla fixed her with a stare.

"Why do we need mirrors?" she asked.

"Because it can protect you. I haven't told you all yet but the monster in the Chamber is a basilisk." Hermione announced, her words making her friends jaws drop.

"WHAT!" Hermione covered her ears as all hell broke loose between her year mates.

"A bloody basilisk-"

"-Can't be serious-"

"-dead for sure-"

"Stop it!" Hermione bellowed as she stood from the bed. She glared at them all as they quieted. "I told Dumbledore about it so I'm sure he'll take care of it! The basilisk is not the biggest problem here. We still need to figure out who is has the tiara." Margarie snorted.

"How is the basilisk not the biggest problem?" she asked hysterically, David reaching out to grab her hand.

"Because Dumbledore can kill it. Like you all said a while back, he is one of the strongest wizards of our century and I'm confident he can do it."

Although Hermione held firm to this belief, it still did not stop her from taking some precautions for herself and her loved ones. It was why she stopped Lily after class the next day.

"Oh, what a surprise! I nearly forgot I had a sister." Lily said, waving her friends off as Hermione came closer to her.

Hermione's eyes drifted between the glares Lily's friends sent her. It was clear that Lily had shared her displeasure about her sister to the two other girls.

"I should have come sooner," Hermione said making Lily sigh.

"Well, what made you come now?" She asked, her green eyes assessing Hermione critically. Hermione could imagine that she looked pretty worse for wear with her dark circles, unkempt mane and small stature. Just the other day one of the Slytherins said she was more hair than human and Hermione could not deny there was some truth to that.

"Merlin, Hermione, you look terrible," Lily said in her blunt way. Hermione noticed her use of wizarding blasphemy instead of muggle and wondered for a moment how much Lily had changed herself to fit in more. She doubted she had to do much since Lily was a captivator of heart and a natural leader.

"I've had a lot on my plate," Hermione responded dryly continuing before Lily could ask what those things were. "Anyway, I have something for you." Hermione dug into her satchel and pulled out a compact mirror. Lily took it with a frown.

"What's this for?" She asked flipping it open and inspecting it as if she expected a Jack in the box to suddenly pop out.

"It's a mirror. One of the older boys in Hufflepuff said that whatever this thing is that left that gruesome message is the heir of Slytherin. He also said that the heir of Slytherin can control snakes and thinks the heir might have a basilisk. He warned that no one can survive a look from a basilisk and should carry a mirror." Hermione wrung her hands as Lily paled, her usual vivacious air dimming with the harsh reality.

"He can't be serious! There's no way the school would stay open with a bloody basilisk on the loose. He must be trying to scare you all."

"No, he's not. I looked into it Lily and it all makes sense. Slytherin's emblem is a snake and it's known that Salazar Slytherin could speak parseltongue and only his heirs are able to speak it as well, that's why only the heir can control snakes and since basilisks are the strongest snake its not far fetched to believe."

Lily remained quiet as she processed Hermione's words. "Do you think we're in danger?" Lily asked, uncharacteristically fearful and timid. Hermione took a sharp breath. Seeing Lily like that hurt her. While Hermione might not always get along with Lily and they argued like cats and dogs, she loved her and never wanted to see her anything other than arrogant and happy.

"Yes, I do. You have to be so careful Lily. Promise me. No staying out past curfew or doing anything brash, okay?" Hermione said reaching out and enveloping Lily in a tight hug. Lily immediately returned the embrace.

"You too! Promise me you won't get hurt." Lily said, her voice muffled from Hermione's hair. She nodded.

A little later, she departed from her sister feeling closer to her for the first time in a long time.

Her last stop was Severus. It was tricker to approach him with all the house tension so she decided to send him an owl that told him to meet her in the library straight after dinner.

She didn't have to wait for him long, though he was scowling at her as soon as she was in his line of sight.

"Hello Sev," She greeted pleasantly, making his scowl deepen.

"Hermione," he answered, taking a seat.

Hermione took her time gazing at him. It had been too long since she last saw him, last heard his voice. _How anyone can confuse him and Alexander is a mystery to me,_ she couldn't help but think. Alexander was mysterious but not unfriendly despite the usual blank look on his face.

Sev, on the other hand, was closed off and had eyes that repelled a person faster than his sharp tongue could. She wondered what it said about her that she enjoyed that aspect of his so much. She wished, as she often had since meeting him, that she had been kinder to him at the start. She wondered what their relationship could be like now if she had.

"If I'd known you had nothing worthwhile to say I would have stood you up." Sev drawled, his eyes meeting hers with boredom.

"I was just marveling at how much healthier you look in the months we've been here..." She said not untruthfully. Severus did look good; he had more meat on his bones and his face was not so peaky. It made her smile to which he responded by glaring at her.

"Don't tell me you summoned me here to find out how I've been doing. I'm going to leave if this is the way the conversation is heading." Hermione pouted at him. She found herself surprised by how much she did not want him to leave and hadn't realized how much she missed him.

"I put a sticking charm on your chair so you wouldn't be able to go even if you wanted to." She lied just to see his reaction. He didn't buy her words for a moment.

"Uh-huh. Even if you had I could just slip out of my robes and be on my way." Hermione stuck her tongue out at him. He rolled his eyes but leaned back in his chair, getting comfortable. She found herself doing the same.

"You know I really missed you. I had so much I wanted to talk to you about like that potion we did before Halloween and what you thought about that first Transfiguration lesson I heard so much about. You're the only one I can really have deep discussions with on academics." She said, gazing at him fixedly. When it came to Sev, she liked springing unexpected partially nice words on him. He was not often complimented so his reactions were always enjoyable whenever she did.

Sev's eyes flicked away from her, his expression as close to bashful as it could get. Her smile brightened before she remembered her purpose.

"Anyway, I have something for you." She said, reaching into robes to hold out a compact mirror for him to take. Sev stared at the circular disk blandly before his eyes shot back up to her.

"No." He said simply making Hermione balk.

"What? How can you say that? You don't even know why I'm giving it to you."

"I have no need for a mirror, Evans and if this is some sort of joke-" He started, crossing his arm, his eyes losing all hint of friendliness.

"I would never, Sev! This mirror is for protection, you might not ever have to use it- I just...I need you to keep it on you at all times." She said very seriously, still holding the mirror out for him.

"And why would a mirror protect me, of all things?" He scoffed.

Hermione took a deep breath before she repeated her story that she told Lily. Sev's gaze was pensive as he brooded over the information she provided him. She wondered if he was ruminating over what she said with the gossip he heard from the Slytherins.

"Has anyone told the Headmaster about this?" he asked in a quiet voice; calm and collected as always. Hermione nodded. "And still nothing has been done?" he hissed, some of his anger finally bleeding into his voice. Hermione bit her lip and could only shrug in the misplaced accusation in his eyes.

"So you mean to tell me that you, knowing full well what sort of monster could be roaming the halls, have come all the way up here to the library this close to curfew just to give me a _mirror_?" Hermione was taken aback by his words and the anger forming on his face.

"Well-"

"I thought you were smart, Hermione."

"I am smart!"

"Could have fooled me."

"That's not very hard, now is it?" she bit back, annoyed at him for getting annoyed at her.

"Merlin, you have such a sharp tongue." Hermione gaped at him, pointing a finger toward herself.

" _I_ have a sharp tongue?" He glared at her.

"Did I stutter?" Hermione snapped her mouth shut before she could retort and drag this out any further.

"Look, I only wanted to do something to try and protect you." She sighed, placing the mirror on the table before them. "So take the mirror and promise me you'll be careful." She ordered. Sev glared imperiously down his nose at her but took the mirror none-the-less before standing up. She realized that he was getting ready to leave and felt a pang in her chest. She was enjoying his company, bickering as they were and being with him helped her feel a little less like she would fall apart at any moment.

"What are you still sitting for?" He asked impatiently. Hermione blinked up at him.

"I don't want to leave yet. I want to stay with you a little longer." Sev's face scrunched up as if confused by her statement before his expression morphed to annoyance.

"You will not stay here a minute longer and I will walk you to your common rooms as its clear you've lost all good sense." Despite his harsh words, Hermione smiled. Usually, Sev's concern only extended far enough to Lily. It felt nice to be held under that umbrella. She stood and together they made their way through the castle to the Hufflepuff dorms.

She noticed that not a lot of students were around even though it was only seven-thirty. The message left by Tom Riddle had done its job and instilled fear in all students. Even Sev seemed affected by their vulnerability and kept a brisk pace, his mirror in hand.

"Hey Sev, will you meet up with me tomorrow too?" She asked, disturbing the quiet. He gave her a sideways glance as they moved.

"No." Hermione gaped at him.

"What? Why not?" she asked aghast. Sev smirked at her. Hermione pursed her lips but was too pleased with his teasing her. She rarely saw his playful side. "Are you messing with me?"

"Why do you want to see me, anyway? I thought you were joined at the hip with those Hufflepuffs." Hermione shrugged.

"Yes, but I see them all the time and just because I have new friends doesn't mean I don't want to still hang out with you."

"And Lily," He added, though his voice hinted toward suspicion. It was not a secret that Hermione and Lily often fought especially when Sev was usually caught up in the middle of it. It was obvious at his words that Lily told him about their last argument and he was fishing.

"Yes, and Lily. We made up before I came to see you. I told her about the possibility of a basilisk on the loose and warned her to be careful." A pinched look came across Sev's face at the mere idea of Lily facing danger. "Don't worry. She promised me she will be safe." Sev nodded as they entered the corridor to the Hufflepuff dorms.

Hermione took a step closer to him, invading his personal space. Before he could back away from her, she enveloped him in a quick hug, not wanting to make him too uncomfortable. "You be safe too. Promise me." She whispered. She waited until he nodded to release him. "I'll see you later, Sev."

"Goodnight." He returned, his voice carefully controlled. She smirked to herself as she walked away from him, knowing he must have been just a little frazzled by her actions.

Hermione felt marginally better in the days that followed. Although nothing was coming back about the diadem through the Hufflepuff gossip channels, she felt confident that at least Dumbledore was working to fix the basilisk problem. It was unfortunate for her that she forgot about Remus.

* * *

Hermione was just drifting off to sleep when the door to her shared room opened. Hermione sat up in bed and immediately snapped to attention at the sight of Professor Sprout in the doorway. Her friends, however, were having a much harder time coming to; Margarie not even stirring in her bed.

"Miss Evans," Professor Sprout began, her face pinched with worry and sadness. Her expression was all Hermione needed to know that something terrible had happened. It was not hard for Hermione to immediately jump to conclusions.

Time slowed for Hermione in those few seconds that followed. Life tunneled as she thought of the worst. _It's Lily. She's been killed._ Feeling as if the world just vanished beneath her, Hermione began to struggle to breathe.

"Miss Evans, please! Lily has not been hurt, she's been petrified. I came to take you to the hospital wing so that you can see her for yourself."

Air filled her lungs once more as she gasped, tears already streaming down her face. "Petrified?" She whispered with relief, her body still unmovable in her shock.

"Yes," Professor Sprout said, coming to place a hand on Hermione's shoulder. The touch slammed Hermione into action and she sprung from her bed, nearly whacking Professor Sprout as she did so. Slipping on a pair of slippers, Hermione had a one-track mind as she moved to the exit in her pj's.

"What happened? Why was Lily out? What happened to her?" She asked, bombarding her head of house with her questions as she practically ran out of the common room. Professor Sprout was having difficulties keeping up with her.

"I'm sorry, Miss Evans. I do not know yet but there was a group of Gryffindor boys out too and they're in the hospital wing with her."

"Boys? Were they James, Sirius, and Peter?" Professor Sprout nodded, slowing down clearly winded. Hermione left her behind, running now to open the hospital doors.

And there they were, looking pale and haunted beside Lily's bed. James stood as she approached, his face shell-shocked and eyes wide behind his glasses. He gazed at her with shame, guilt and fear, his hands clutching onto his invisibility cloak. Hermione's teeth gritted at the sight of it.

"What happened?" She asked, her eyes trailing to the sight of her sister's face frozen in fear, holding up her mirror. Before any of the boys could answer Madam Pomfrey, Headmaster Dumbledore, Professor Slughorn, and Professor McGonagall exited from Madam Pomfrey's office while Professor Sprout finally caught up to her.

Hermione felt a ferocious anger welling inside of her at the sight of Dumbledore. She could not control her glare as she gazed at him. _I trusted you! I thought you were taking care of it and now look what's happened!_ If Dumbledore was surprised by her rage, he did not show it as he gazed around at his students.

All at once, Hermione, James, Sirius, and Peter began speaking.

"-this happen with you in charge-"

"-long until she wakes-"

"-not our fault, Professors-"

"-told them this was a bad-"

"Enough," Headmaster Dumbledore said, raising his hand and stilling the conversation. His eyes wandered between all the students, looking stern yet emitting an air of calm and reassurance. His eyes fell upon Hermione last and she met his stare with accusation.

"Miss Evans is not aware of what has taken place tonight. Why don't you four explain to her what happened." He suggested, turning his head to gaze at the other three. James face grew pained as he faced her and it was clear he was blaming himself for Lily's petrification. Sirius, however, gazed at her guardedly, already on the defensive. Peter just looked scared.

"I'm so sorry, Hermione. We were being idiots. We thought we could sneak out to see...we didn't know Lily was going to follow us, I swear but she did. She tried to tell us that it was dangerous and that we needed to stay in the common room but we didn't listen to her and..." James voice got choked up, his eyes unable to hold her gaze. "we left her behind and then we heard her scream." James shivered, slumping back down on his chair looking haunted. Sirius' lips tightened as he too turned his head away. The absence of Remus made it clear to Hermione that the boys had probably snuck out to see Remus, not aware yet, or only just becoming suspicious about his Lycanthropy.

Hermione understood then and could picture it in her head like a movie. Lily would have confronted them in the common room and they wouldn't have listened to her. Being arrogant little boys, they probably thought Lily was being dramatic and that the flimsy little invisible cloak would protect them. Lily, being a brash, self-righteous fool would have gone after them, convinced that she could force them to listen to her but not realizing that they had the cloak, she would never have been able to find them. Unfortunately, it made her the perfect bait for the basilisk.

"She was petrified by a basilisk. It was lucky that she had only looked at it through this mirror." Professor McGonagall said, taking said mirror out of Lily's frozen hand. Hermione turned her glare back onto Dumbledore, trembling with frayed nerves.

"And what are you guys doing about this? There's a basilisk loose that can kill us ad you all are just standing here!" Hermione bellowed, her voice startling Peter.

"Miss Evans," Professor Sprout breathed, shocked by her outburst.

"No! Lily could have died," Shaking, Hermione hugged herself as she remembered how it felt when she thought Lily had. _And it would have been your fault. Not theirs._ She knew her anger was misplaced but she could do nothing to stop herself. "Someone is out there releasing a basilisk on us and I want to know what is being done."

"That is well in your rights, Miss Evans." Headmaster said, meeting her gaze solemnly. "We are in the works to close down the school so that no further students may be endangered when we hunt the basilisk."

"What?" Sirius burst out, flying from his seat at Dumbledore's announcement. "But you can't close the school-"

"It is in the works, Mister Black as it is too great of a risk to stay open while the creature still breathes."

"No-" Sirius started only to be stopped when James stood and placed a hand on his shoulder. Snapping his mouth shut, Sirius stilled whatever he was going to say.

"How much time do we have left before school closes?" James asked.

"The board of directors are dragging their feet with the process." Dumbeldore answered politically. Hermione's fist clenched at her sides. "As soon as there is a definite date, I will make the announcement."

That was not good enough for Hermione, not even remotely. Hermione tuned out the rest of the discussion as she neared Lily, reaching out to her but immediately pulling away at the unnatural cold feel of her hand. _I'm going to fix this,_ she promised, determination surging through her veins.

She had a plan.


End file.
